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Catskill  Aqueduct 

and  Earlier  Water  Supplies 
of  the  City  of  New  York 


With  elementary  Chapters  on  the  Source 

and  Uses  of  Water  and  the  Building 

of  Aqueducts,  and  an  Outline 

for  an  Allegorical  Pageant 


The  Mayor's 

Catskill  Aqueduct  Celebration  Committee 

New  York 

1917 


GIFT  OF 


The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

and  Earlier  Water  Supplies 
of  the  City  of  New  York 


With  elementary  Chapters  on  the  Source 

and  Uses  of  Water  and  the  Building 

of  Aqueducts,  and  an  Outline 

for  an  Allegorical  Pageant 


By  Edward  Hagaman  Hall,  L.  H.  D. 


The   Mayor's 

Catskill  Aqueduct  Celebration  Committee 

New  York 

1917 


"1  will  lift  up  mine  eyes  unto  the  hills 
from  whence  cometh^my  help." — Psalms, 
CXXI,  1. 


Contents 


FAGE 

INTRODUCTION     5 

CHAPTER  I. 

THE  USES  AND  SOURCE  OF  WATER 9 

Necessary  for  life — Food  and  drink — Health — Sanitation        • 
— Fire  protection — Industry — Commerce — Source  of  water 
— Religious  ceremonies. 

CHAPTER  II. 

AQUEDUCTS  AND  WHY  THEY  ARE  BUILT 17 

Definition — Reasons  for  building  aqueducts — Early  aque- 
ducts— Roman  aqueducts — Comparisons  with  Catskill 
Aqueduct. 

CHAPTER  III. 

MANHATTAN'S  PRIMITIVE  WATER  SUPPLY 26 

Era  of  pumps  and  wells — Tea  Water  Pump — Primitive 
fire  department — Great  fires  and  epidemics. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

EARLY    PIPE    LINE    PROJECTS 42 

Colics'  water-works — Projects  of  Ogden,  Livingston, 
Rumsey  and  others — Manhattan  Co.'s  water-works — First 
municipal  water-works  of  1829 — Croton  aqueduct  decided 
upon. 

CHAPTER  V. 

THE    CROTON    AQUEDUCT 58 

Old  Croton  dam — High  Bridge — Yorkville  reservoir — 
Murray  Hill  reservoir — Lake  Manahatta — New  Croton 
aqueduct — New  Croton  dam — Extent  of  Croton  system. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

OTHER   BOROUGH   WATER   SUPPLIES 70 

Borough  of  Brooklyn — Borough  of  Queens — Borough  of 
the  Bronx — Borough  of  Richmond. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

THE    CATSKILL    AQUEDUCT • .  .77 

Evolution  of  the  project — Catskill  Mountains — Prelim- 
inary exploration — Ashokan  reservoir — Humanitarian 
work — Types  of  aqueduct  construction — From  Ashokan  to 
the  Hudson — Hudson  river  crossing — From  the  Hudson 
to  Kensico — Kensico  reservoir — From  Kensico  to  Hill 
View — Hill  View  reservoir — New  York  City  tunnel — 
Crossing  the  Narrows — Silver  Lake  reservoir — Measur- 
ing water — Cost  of  aqueduct — Distribution  of  water. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

A    PAGEANT  OF   WATER • 115 

An  allegorical  pageant  for  celebrating  the  completion  of 
the  Catskill  Aqueduct. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  MAYOR'S  CATSKILL  AQUEDUCT  CELEBRATION   COMMITTEE 125 

Names  of  members,  officers  and  chairmen  of  sub-com- 
mittees of  the  Citizens  Committee  appointed  by  Mayor 
Mitchel. 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PAGE 

Map  of  the  Catskill  aqueduct 8 

Ruins  of  ancient  Roman  aqueducts  on  the  Campagna  at  Rome  ...  15 

Ancient  water-courses  of  Manhattan  still  flowing  in  Central  Park . .  21 
View  of  Broad  street  and  Federal  Hall  in  Wall  street  in  1797,  by 

George  Holland,  showing  street  pumps 27 

Engineer  Stoutenburgh's   sketch   of  one   of    the   first  two   fire 

"Ingens",   1732 , 33 

Hand  pump  fire-engine  of  period  of  1732 39 

"  Double-decker  "  fire  engine,  period  of  1840 39 

Horse-drawn  steam  fire-engine,  period  of  1865 45 

Self-propelled  steam  fire  engine,  period  of  1917 45 

The  Manhattan  Company's  reservoir  in  Chambers  street  in  1825. .  51 

Laying  the  large  Croton  aqueduct  main  on  High  bridge  in  1861  . .  57 

High  bridge  to-day 57 

New  Croton  dam 63 

Ashokan  reservoir:  Looking  westward  across  the  reservoir 69 

Ashokan  reservoir:  View  westward  from  middle  dike 75 

Ashokan  reservoir:    Ashokan    bridge,    dividing    weir  and  gate 

chambers 81 

Ashokan  reservoir  :  Dividing  weir  bridge 87 

Bonticou  grade  tunnel,  typical  of  other  grade  tunnel  work 93 

Rondout  pressure  tunnel,  typical  of  other  pressure  tunnel  work . .  99 
Crossing  under  Hudson  river  between  Storm  King  and  Breakneck 

mountains 105 

Kensico  dam  at  Valhalla  in  Westchester  county in 

Laying  3o-inch  flexible  pipe  line  across  the  Narrows  of  New  York 

Harbor 117 

Mount  Prospect  laboratory  in  Brooklyn 123 

South  street  high  pressure  fire  station  in  Manhattan 123 


Introduction 


The  Catskill  aqueduct,  the  construction  of  which  was  begun 
ten  years  ago,  is  now  in  full  operation,  delivering  to  the  City  of 
Xew  York  water  brought  from  the  Catskill  mountains,  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty  miles  away. 

Acting  upon  the  request  of  representatives  of  some  of  the 
leading  commercial  bodies  of  the  city,  the  Hon.  John  Purroy 
Mitchel,  Mayor,  has  appointed  a  committee  of  citizens  to  ar- 
range a  public  observance  of  the  completion  of  the  aqueduct,  and 
plans  are  being  formulated  for  a  suitable  celebration  beginning 
on  October  12,  1917. 

The  completion  of  this  great  engineering  feat  is  deemed 
worthy  of  commemoration  for  several  reasons. 

In  the  first  place,  when  it  is  remembered  that  only  three  or 
four  years  ago,  in  a  season  of  drouth,  the  city  counted  by  days 
how  long  its  reserve  supply  of  water  would  last,  it  is  a  cause  of 
inexpressible  relief  to  the  municipal  authorities,  and  should  also 
be  to  the  citizens  at  large,  that  this  increased  supply,  upon  which 
the  very  life  of  the  people  depends,  is  now  at  their  doors  and 
that  the  necessity  of  "rationing"  water  has  been  averted.  This 
is  the  first  reason  for  popular  congratulation ;  and  it  has  been 
brought  about  so  quietly  that  unless  there  is  some  public  demon- 
stration, few  people  comparatively  will  realize  what  a  great  bless- 
ing has  come  to  them  and  the  important  lessons  involved. 

It  is  an  occasion  also  for  unreserved  pride  in  American  genius 
which  has  achieved  a  stupendous  engineering  triumph.  Starting 
at  an  elevation  of  610  feet  above  tide  level  in  the  Catskill  moun- 
tains, and  creating  four  large  lakes  on  its  way,  the  aqueduct  bur- 
rows under  valleys,  tunnels  through  mountains,  dives  under  rivers 
to  a  depth  of  1,114  feet  below  sea-level,  bores  through  the  solid 
rock  of  Manhattan  Island,  and  delivers  pure  mountain  water  to 
every  borough  of  the  city.  It  is  120  miles  long  and  is  capable 
of  delivering  500,000,000  gallons  of  water  a  day.  The  greatest 
of  the  famous  Roman  aqueducts  was  only  half  as  long  as  this 
one,  and  in  technical  difficulty  was,  in  comparison,  like  building 
houses  with  children's  "blocks."  The  Catskill  aqueduct  is  three 
times  as  long  as  the  Panama  canal,*  and  involved  problems  and 

*  The  Panama  canal  is  41 1/2  miles  long  from  shore  to  shore.     Extension  by  dredging 
to  deep  water  makes  the  nominal  length  of  the  canal  about  50  miles. 


6  Introduction 

difficulties  unheard  of  in  the  canal's  construction.  Ex-Mayor 
McClellan,  in  an  article  published  March  7,  1917,  said:  "The 
great  Catskill  waterway  .  .  .  is  in  itself  certainly  the  great- 
est piece  of  water  supply  engineering,  if  not  the  greatest  engi- 
neering achievement  of  any  kind,  in  the  world.  I  think  that  Gen. 
Goethals  will  agree  with  me  that  the  Panama  canal,  while  more 
spectacular  in  character,  did  not  offer  the  engineering  problems 
which  had  to  be  met  and  overcome  in  bringing  an  underground 
river  all  the  way  from  the  Catskills  to  ...  New  York  City." 

Back  of  these  physical  achievements  there  were  important 
moral  and  civic  forces  at  work  which  the  Mayor's  Committee 
deems  it  highly  profitable,  from  the  standpoint  of  the  public  wel- 
fare, to  emphasize  in  the  celebration.  The  construction  of  the 
Catskill  aqueduct,  covering  a  period  of  ten  years,  affords  a  model 
of  honest,  clean  and  efficient  municipal  government  in  which  every 
citizen  should  take  pride.  It  is  being  finished  within  the  original 
estimate  of  expense  and  is  a  commendable  example  of  municipal 
economy.*  It  has  been  completed  within  contract  time§  without 
a  labor  strike,  and  is  a  tribute  alike  to  the  Commission  which 
directed  the  work,  the  contractors  who  carried  it  out,  and  the 
workmen  who  labored  faithfully  to  build  it.  In  its  inception  it 
was  fostered  by  citizen  bodies  having  the  public  interests  at  heart, 
and  in  its  execution  it  had  their  invaluable  support.  It  is  a  testi- 
mony of  what  distinterested  civic  spirit  in  co-operation  with  faith- 
ful public  officials  can  accomplish.  The  celebration,  therefore, 
while  giving  an  opportunity  for  a  merited  tribute  to  the  builders 
of  the  aqueduct,  is  also  and  chiefly  an  opportunity  for  teaching 
important  civic  lessons. 

It  is  hoped  that  the  celebration  as  a  whole  will  cause  the 
people  of  New  York  to  realize  more  fully  than  heretofore  the 
value  of  their  wonderful  water  supply.  There  are  other  and 
smaller  cities  which  have  as  good  water,  and  as  much  in  propor- 
tion to  their  needs,  as  New  York ;  but  the  problem  of  supplying 
with  water  a  city  of  nearly  6,000,000  inhabitants  situated  like  New 
York  is  unique.  There  is  nothing  to  be  compared  with  it.  If,  by 
some  evil  magic,  New  Yorkers  were  compelled  for  a  day  to  dig 
in  the  sand  and  wait  for  a  few  pints  of  water  to  ooze  up,  or  to 
bring  their  water  in  jars  from  distant  springs,  or  laboriously  to 
pump  it  out  of  wells,  they  would  appreciate  the  yalue  of  what 

§  Mayor  McClellan  broke  ground  for  the  aqueduct  on  June  20,   1907. 
*  The  aqueduct  has  cost  to  date  about  $140,000,000. 


Introduction  7 

they  have  when  the  spell  was  over.*  But  human  nature  is  prone 
to  take  as  a  matter  of  course  blessings  which  come  regularly  and 
without  individual  effort ;  and  it  is  to  be  feared  that  too  few  Xew 
Yorkers  appreciate  the  great  foresight  and  constant  watchful- 
exercised  by  the  guardians  of  their  welfare,  the  infinite 
pains  and  labor  bestowed,  the  vast  amount  of  money  expended, 
and  the  wonderful  scientific  skill  displayed,  in  bringing  into 
their  homes  that  priceless  fluid  upon  which  their  very  lives  depend, 
and  which  they  draw  from  a  faucet  by  a  mere  turn  of  the  hand. 
If  the  celebration  shall  cause  the  citizens  of  New  York  to 
pause  for  a  moment  in  their  ordinary  affairs,  and,  from  the  con- 
templation of  the  great  work  just  completed,  derive  an  adequate 
conception  of  this  one  of  their  many  blessings,  it  will  have  served 
its  not  least  useful  purpose. 

In  furtherance  of  the  various  objects  of  the  celebration,  this 
pamphlet  has  been  prepared.  With  a  view  to  educational  use, 
the  first  two  chapters  have  been  devoted  to  the  elements  of  natural 
physics,  hygiene,  and  sanitation,  and  the  reasons  for  building 
aqueducts,  addressed  more  particularly  to  the  youthful  under- 
standing; and  the  seventh  chapter  contains  an  outline  for  an 
allegorical  pageant  appropriate  to  the  general  subject. 


Washington's  Birthday,  in  1913,  when  President  Taft  broke  ground  in  Fort 
Wadsworth,  Staten  Island,  for  a  National  Indian  Monument,  to  be  erected  under  the 
auspices  of  the  National  American  Indian  Memorial  Association,  many  Indians  took 
part  in  the  ceremony.  After  the  Indians  had  been  shown  the  sights  of  the  city,  one 
of  them,  who  came  from  an  arid  section  of  the  West,  was  asked  what  he  considered 
to  be  the  most  wonderful  thing  in  New  York ;  and  he  pointed  to  a  faucet,  from 
which  water  could  be  drawn  at  any  time. 


•*^  ASHOKAN  RESERVOIR"* 

JjjV'Lafr' 


CTN  G         ISLAND 


n  f  i:  .1 


Map  of  Catskill  Aqueduct 

The  Aqueduct  is   120  miles  long  from  Ashokan  Reservoir  to  Staten  Island 
and  supplies  all  five  Boroughs  of  the  City  of  New  York 


Chapter  I. 
The  Uses  and  Source  of  Water 


Necessary  for  Life 

Nothing  can  live  without  water.  Where  there  is  no  water 
there  can  be  no  life  of  any  kind,  vegetable  or  animal.  There 
is  no  water  on  the  moon,  therefore  no  living  thing  can  exist  there. 
If  there  were  no  water  on  the  earth,  there  would  be  no  trees, 
plants,  or  vegetables  of  any  sort ;  no  food  to  eat ;  nothing  to  drink, 
and  therefore  no  human  beings  or  lower  animals.  Everything 
would  be  a  vast  desert  of  rocks  or  sand.* 

Necessary  for   Food   and   Drink 

One  reason  why  rain  makes  the  crops  grow  and  why  we 
"water"  plants  is  that  they  cannot  take  up  from  the  earth  and 
absorb  in  solid  and  dry  form  the  food  on  which  they  live.  The 
particles  of  earth  which  form  their  food  must  be  dissolved  in 
water  so  that  the  nourishing  fluid  can  be  sucked  up  by  the  little 
tubes  in  the  roots  and  other  parts  of  the  plants. 

In  the  same  way  bodies  of  human  beings  and  other  animals 
cannot  live  and  grow  on  solid  dry  food.  Food  must  be  mixed 
with  water  so  that  the  little  particles,  carried  by  the  fluid,  will 
pass  through  the  organs,  arteries  and  veins  and  reach  every  part 
of  the  body  to  nourish  it. 

Water  not  only  serves  the  mechanical  purpose  of  carrying 
food  in  plants  and  animals  but  it  also  helps  the  chemical  changes 
in  the  food  which  make  it  nourishing. 

About  two-thirds  of  the  weight  of  the  human  body  is  water. 
When  there  is  not  water  enough  in  the  body  for  its  functions, 
one  feels  thirsty :  and  when  one  feels  thirsty  there  is  nothing 
so  wholesome  and  satisfying  to  drink  as  water  which  Nature  has 
provided  for  this  purpose.  The  use  of  intoxicating  liquor  instead 
of  water  is  not  only  bad  morally,  but  it  is  bad  for  the  health  and 
should  be  avoided. 


Probably  without  the  water  of  crystallization,  the  surface  rocks  would  turn  to  dust. 


io  The  Uses  and  Source  of  Water 

Necessary  for  Health 

As  water  is  necessary  for  life,  so  it  is  necessary  for  health. 
And  this  is  so  in  many  ways.  When  a  person  eats  and  drinks, 
the  food  is  digested  and  changed  in  the  body;  the  useful  part 
goes  to  nourish  the  body  and  the  useless  part  is  carried  off.  The 
useless  and  unhealthy  particles  are  carried  away  by  the  aid  of 
water  just  as  the  good  particles  are  distributed  in  the  body  by 
the  aid  of  water.  Sweat,  or  perspiration,  is  one  means  by  which 
the  body  gets  rid  of  this  unhealthy  matter.*  There  are  about 
2,000,000  pores  in  the  skin  of  an  average  person,  and  sweat  is 
always  coming  out  through  them,  whether  it  can  be  seen  or  not. 
Evaporation  of  sweat  cools  the  body ;  that  is  one  reason  why 
fanning,  or  a  breeze,  makes  one  feel  cool.  When  sweat  evap- 
orates, it  leaves  on  the  skin  and  in  the  clothing  the  solid  particles 
which  the  body  has  rejected.  Unless  the  body  is  washed,  this 
accumulated  matter  not  only  makes  a  disagreeable  odor,  but  it 
clogs  the  pores,  interferes  with  their  operation,  and  injures  the 
health.  Keeping  the  body  clean  also  reduces  the  danger  of  com- 
municating disease  to,  or  catching  disease  from  others. §  For 
similar  reasons  it  is  as  necessary  to  wash  the  clothing  as  the 
body. 

Necessary  for  Sanitation 

Water  is  necessary  for  health  in  another  way.  Just  as  it 
serves  to  carry  useless  and  unhealthy  matter  out  of  the  body,  so  it 
serves  to  carry  the  dirt  and  filth  out  of  the  house  and  city  through 
the  sewers.  There  could  be  no  sewer  system  without  an  adequate 
water  supply.  Without  sewers  and  a  water  supply  there  could  be 
no  sinks  or  water-closets  in  our  houses ;  the  streets  could  not  be 
washed ;  filth  would  accumulate ;  and  disease  and  death  would  be 
the  result.  Great  epidemics,  causing  the  death  of  thousands  of 
people,  have  been  caused  by  lack  of  proper  water  supply  and 
>c\v<jrage.  For  that  reason  the  City  of  Mexico  used  to  be  the 
unhealthiest  city  in  the  civilized  world.  It  is  as  necessary,  there- 
fore, to  keep  the  rooms  of  houses,  the  door-yards  and  the  streets 
clean  as  it  is  to  keep  the  body  and  clothes  clean. 

*  It  is   hardly  necessary   to   mention  the  other   natural   excreta. 

§  There  is  no  disease  the  germs  of  which  pass  out  through  the  pores  of  the  skin  in 
sweat;  but  for  other  reasons,  too  technical  to  be  explained  here,  the  danger  of  con- 
tagion is  greatly  reduced  by  bodily  cleanlhiess. 


The  Uses  and  Source  of  Water  n 

Necessary  for  Protection  from  Fire 

\Yater  is  Nature's  great  provision  for  extinguishing  fires. 
Fire,  when  under  control,  is  one  of  man's  most  useful  friends; 
but  when  uncontrolled  is  one  of  his  most  destructive  enemies.  As 
civilization  has  progressed,  the  uses  of  fire  have  multiplied  and 
consequently  the  dangers  have  increased.  The  Indians  made  fire 
with  difficulty  by  rubbing  tw.o  pieces  of  wood  together ;  and  even 
in  the  days  of  our  own  grandparents,  before  matches  were  in- 
vented, it  was  so  difficult  to  make  fire  with  flint  and  steel  that 
people  kept  coals  burning  on  their  hearths  all  night  so  as  to 
have  fire  for  heat  and  cooking  the  next  day :  arid  if  their  coals 
went  out,  they  borrowed  fire  from  their  neighbors.  To-day,  we 
have  the  means  of  making  fire  everywhere,  and  there  is  great 
danger  from  fire  unless  there  is  constant  care  to  prevent  it,  and 
adequate  provision  for  putting  it  out  if  it  starts.  Considering 
how  universal  the  use  of  fire  is,  and  how  all-prevailing  is  the 
danger  from  it,  we  see  how  good  Providence  has  been  in  pro- 
viding abundant  means  for  extinguishing  it  in  case  of  necessity. 
Our  homes  and  shops,  churches  and  schools,  factories  and  offices, 
and  the  lives  of  our  people  in  them,  would  not  be  safe  a  day 
without  an  adequate  water  supply  and  an  efficient  fire  depart- 
ment. The  great  damage  in  San  Francisco  in  1906  at  the  time  of 
the  earthquake  wras  not  due  primarily  to  the  earthquake,  but  to 
the  breaking  of  the  water  pipes  which  prevented  extinguishing 
the  fire  which  started.  In  Xew  York  there  is  no  danger  from 
earthquakes,  but  there  would  be  great  danger  from  fire  if  it  were 
not  for  the  water  supply  and  the  fire  department.  Because  of 
these  wrise  provisions,  Xe\v  York  never  had  a  great  fire  like  those 
in  Chicago  in  1871,  in  Boston  in  1872  and  in  San  Francisco  in 
1906. 

Useful  in  Industry 

Man  increases  the  products  of  his  industry  and  labor  by 
employing  some  kind  of  force  other  than  that  of  his  own  muscles. 
The  three  principal  sources  of  power  are  animals,  as  from  horses ; 
the  wind,  as  from  windmills ;  and  water,  directly  or  indirectly,  as 
described  hereafter.  Water  is  used  directly  for  power  at  water- 
falls, which  turn  wheels  and  run  mills  and  factories  nearby. 
Sometimes  the  \vater- falls  run  machinery  which  makes  electricity 
and  the  electricity  is  sent  long  distances  over  \vires  to  be  turned 


12  The  Uses  and  Source  of  Water 

into  power  again  to  run  trolley  cars  and  factories,  or  to  make  elec- 
tric light  or  heat.  Water,  when  heated  and  turned  into  steam, 
makes  the  steam  engine  go  on  the  railroad;  runs  the  stationary 
engine  in  the  factory ;  produces  electricity  where  there  is  no  water 
power ;  and  pulls  the  traction-plow  or  other  machine  on  the  farm. 
Water  is  not  only  used  for  power,  but  it  is  used  in  an  infinite 
number  of  ways  in  manufacturing  processes.  So  universal  is  the 
use  of  water  in  industry  that  it  may  be  said  in  literal  truth  that 
not  a  thing  is  manufactured — for  food,  clothing,  housing,  trans- 
portation, or  any  other  purpose, — of  which  water  does  not  form 
a  part  or  in  the  making  of  which  water  does  not  help.  If  we 
had  only  enough  water  for  food  and  drink  and  none  for  mechan- 
ical and  manufacturing  purposes,  nearly  all  forms  of  modern  in- 
dustry, and  almost  all  the  manifold  activities  of  our  lives  would 
come  to  a  stand-still. 

Useful  in  Commerce 

Water  covers  two-thirds  of  the  surface  of  the  earth.  As 
man  cannot  walk  on  \vater,  he  has  built  boats  which  float  on  it, 
and  thus  he  uses  the  rivers,  lakes  and  oceans  to  bear  the  commerce 
of  the  world.  New  York  City  owes  her  commercial  greatness 
largely  to  her  situation  upon  a  number  of  islands  surrounded  by 
water  and  upon  the  mainland  adjacent  to  water ;  to  the  Erie  canal* 
and  the  Hudson  river,  by  which  she  is  connected  with  the  Great 
Lakes ;  and  to  her  municipal  water  supply  which  provides  not  only 
for  the  life,  health  and  safety  of  her  great  population  but  also  for 
the  great  industries  which  make  her  the  leading  manufacturing 
city  of  the  United  States. 

By  reason  of  her  water  supply  and  her  water  situation,  New 
York  is  enabled  to  employ  in  her  manufactures  more  capital,  to 
pay  more  wages,  to  use  more  materials,  to  make  products  of 
greater  value,  and  to  have  a  greater  water-borne  commerce  than 
any  other  city  in  the  Western  Hemisphere — and  (at  the  present 
time)  probably  in  the  world. § 

*  Before  the  Erie  canal  was  opened  in  1825,  Philadelphia  was  a  larger  city  than 
New  York.  It  is  generally  conceded  that  the  Erie  canal  gave  New  York  the  start 
which  led  to  her  commercial  preeminence. 

§  The  following  figures  for  the  year  1914  are  taken  from  the  United  States  census 
of  manufactures: 

Salaries 

City.  Capital  and  wages.  Materials.  Products. 

New     York     City.  .    $1,  626,  104,  000     $510,711,000     $1,229,155,000     $6,292,832,000 

Chicago 1,189,976,000       303,630,000  901,658,000        1,482,814   000 

Philadelphia 772,696,000       185,484,000  451,197,000  784,500,000 

The  commerce  of  this  port,  including  exports  and  imports,  in  1916  was  $3,517,987,000, 
which  is  about  ten  times  as  much  as  that  of  Boston,  this  city's  nearest  competitor. 


The  Uses  and  Source  of  Water  13 

The  Source  of  Water 

Seeing  how  essential  water  is  to  life  and  how  its  use  con- 
tributes to  our  well-being  in  every  way,  it  is  interesting  to  observe 
the  wonderful  way  in  which  Nature  supplies  it  for  the  needs  of 
man. 

Water  exists  in  three  forms.  As  snow  and  ice  it  is  a  solid; 
as  steam  and  fog,  and  when  suspended  invisibly  in  the  air,  it  is  a 
rap  or;  and  as  ordinary  water  it  is  a  liquid.  The  same  "law  of 
gravitation"  which  causes  a  thing  to  fall  to  the  ground  or  a  ball 
to  roll  down  hill  causes  water  to  seek  the  lowest  level.  Therefore 
all  water  tends  to  run  toward  the  ocean.*  If  nature  made  no 
provision  for  bringing  the  water  back  again,  all  the  water  of  the 
earth  would  be  collected  in  the  lowest  places  and  the  land 
surfaces  would  be  dry  deserts.  But  the  Creator  has  provided  a 
marvellous  system  by  which  the  water  keeps  going  back  to  the 
land  as  fast  as  it  goes  from  the  land  to  the  ocean. § 

When  the  sun  shines  on  the  ocean,  or  any  other  body  of 
water,  some  of  the  water  is  turned  into  vapor.  This  vapor,  which 
is  generally  invisible  at  first,  rises  into  the  air  and  is  carried  by  the 
winds  to  different  parts  of  the  earth.  If  th~  vapor  meets  cooler 
currents  of  air,  or  if  in  rising  the  air  expands  so  that  the  invisible 
water  becomes  heavier  than  the  air,  the  vapor  condenses  and 
becomes  visible  as  clouds.  Clouds  are  water  floating  in  the  air. 
A  rainbow  also  •consists  of  drops  of  water  which  refract  the 
sunlight  in  beautiful  colors.  When  the  clouds  become  dense 
enough,  the  water  which  forms  them  falls  either  as  snow  or  rain. 
The  rain  and  melted  snow  make  our  fresh  water. 

When  the  rain  falls  on  the  hills  and  fields,  the  roofs  and 
streets,  it  immediately  begins  to  soak  through  the  ground  or  run 
down  hill,  always  trying  to  reach  a  lower  level.  Falling  and  run- 
ning water,  or  water  in  the  form  of  glaciers,  has  enormous 
power  to  wear  away  the  surface  of  the  earth.  It  is  Nature's 
great  sculptor,  whichf  has  carved  the  hills  and  valleys  and  the 
rocks  into  all  the  beautiful  shapes  which  we  see  in  the  landscape. 

*  This  statement  is  sufficiently  exact  as  a  generalization.  If  all  waters  do  not  reach 
a  common  level  it  is  because  of  some  physical  obstruction-  or  evaporation.  The  surface 
of  the  Dead  Sea  is  1.292  feet  below  sea-level,  while  that  of  Great  Salt  Lake  in  Utah  is 
4.200  feet  above  sea-level;  but  physical  barriers  prevent  their  waters  and  those  of  the 
ocean  coming  to  a  common  level.  The  only  escape  of  the  waters  of  the  Dead  Sea  and 
Great  Salt  Lake  is  by  evaporation. 

§  Solomon  said:  "All  the  rivers  run  into  the  sea,  yet  the  sea  is  not  full;  into  the 
place  from  whence  the  rivers  come  thither  they  return  again." — Ecclesiastes,  i,  7. 

f  Aided   by   aerial   erosion. 


14  The  Uses  and  Source  of  Water 

One  of  the  most  wonderful  examples  of  the  power  of  water  to 
carve  the  earth  is  the  Grand  Canyon  of  the  Colorado  river  in 
Arizona,  which  is  over  a  mile  deep  anfl  measures  from  ten  to 
fifteen  miles  from  rim  to  rim.  As  the  vf^ter  runs  over  the  sur- 
face or  soaks  through  the  ground  it  gradually  collects  in  streams 
and  lakes  which  in  turn  empty  eventually  into  the  ocean,  and 
thus  the  water  gets  back  to  the  starting  point.  And  so  it  keeps 
up  its  eternal  round. 

When,  in  soaking  through  the  ground  and  flowing  over  the 
surface,  the  water  dissolves  and  wea^fs  away  the  rocks  and  soil, 
it  deposits  the  heavier  particles  in  lo^er  places,  but  retains  some 
minerals  in  solution.  Upon  the  ^proportion  of  these  minerals 
depends  the  purity  of  the  water.  When  the  minerals  are  abund- 
ant in  water  it  is  called  mineral  water.  W^ater  with  much  lime 
or  iron  in  it  is  called  "hard"  water.  The  water  from  the  Catskill 
mountains  is  very  free  from  minerals  and  therefore  is  a  "soft'' 
water,  very  good  for  drinking,  cooking  and  washing.  The  most 
common  mineral  which  water  collects  in  its  journey  to  the  ocean 
is  salt.  When  the  water  evaporates  from  the  ocean,  or  from  a 
lake  which  has  no  outlet,  like  the  Great  Salt  Lake,  the  salt  is  left 
behind,  so  that  sea  water  is  salty  and  cannot  be  drunk ;  and  it  is 
the  rain  which  supplies  fresh  water  for  all  the  beneficial  uses  of 
man. 

Religious  Observances 

Water  is  such  a  great  blessing  to  mankind  and  so  indis- 
pensable to  his  life  and  happiness,  that  all  peoples  of  all  ages, 
from  the  aborigines  to  the  present  time,  have,  in  the  forms  of 
their  various  religions,  prayed  to  God  for  it  and  thanked  Him 
for  it.  The  Indians  of  Arizona  perform  very  beautiful  "flute 
ceremonies"  around  their  water  pools  and  the  Hopi  Indians  have 
a  most  remarkable  ceremony  for  rain  in  the  form  of  a  Snake 
Dance,  in  which  their  priests  dance  around  holding  big  snakes 
in  their  mouths.  The  New  York  Indians  used  to  have  a  Rain 
Dance  and  a  Corn  Planting  Dance;  and  when  they  passed 
Niagara  Falls  and  other  waterfalls  they  would  empty  a  wooden 
plateful  of  tobacco  into  the  waterfall  as  an  offering  to  the  Great 
Spirit.  It  was  also  a  very  ancient  practice  in  the  Old  World,  to 
throw  offerings  into  springs,  rivers  and  lakes  that  were  sacred. 
Extraordinary  proof  of  the  antiquity  of  this  custom  was  dis- 
covered in  1852  when  the  Jesuit  fathers,  who  owned  the  cele- 


8. 


1 6  The  Uses  and  Source  of  Water 

brated  sulphur  springs  called  "Sorgenti  di  Vicarello"  (by  the 
ancients  called  the  Waters  of  Apollo),  on  the  western  border 
of  the  Lake  of  Bracciano  in  Italy,  sent  from  Rome  a  gang  of 
masons  to  clear  the  mouth  of  the  central  spring  and  put  the 
whole  in  order.  In  draining  a  well  only  a  few  feet  below  the 
ordinary  level  of  the  waters  they  came  across  a  layer  of  brass 
and  silver  coins  of  the  fourth  century  after  Christ.  As  they 
continued  to  dig,  they  found  offerings  of  earlier  periods,  gold 
and  silver  coins,  silver  cups,  etc.  The  farther  down  they  went 
the  cruder  the  offerings  were.  Under  the  earliest  known  Roman 
coins  were  found  shapeless  pieces  of  copper,  an  early  kind  of 
currency,  and  lowest  of  all  they  found  a  stratum  of  stone  arrow- 
heads, polished  stone  knives,  etc.,  of  the  stone  age  long  before 
Rome  was  founded.* 

Another  curious  illustration  of  more  modern  date,  showing 
veneration  for  water,  is  cited  by  Clemens  Herschel  in  his  work 
on  Frontinus'  "Two  Books  on  the  Water  Supply  of  the  City  of 
Rome."  He  mentions  that  in  the  seventeenth  century,  it  was 
one  of  the  "rules  of  the  bath"  at  Baden,  near  Vienna,  to  salute 
the  water  on  entering  and  leaving  it.  A  guest  was  fined  if  he 
omitted  this  ceremony  or  spoke  of  the  bath  as  mere  water. 

The  Babylonians  in  their  religion  associated  Wisdom  with 
Water  and  symbolized  this  belief  in  the  form  of  a  fish-god. 
Whatever  may  be  thought  of  the  Babylonian  religion,  it  is  safe 
to  say  that  they  were  pretty  near  the  truth  in  recognizing  some 
relation  between  Water  and  Wisdom.  Great  and  beneficent 
Wisdom  has  given  water  to  man  for  his  use  and  those  people  are 
wise  who  use  it  freely  and  properly. 

*  Lanciani's  "Ancient  Dome,"  p.   46. 


Chapter  II. 
Aqueducts  and  Why  They  Are  Built 

Definition  of  the  Word  Aqueduct 

The  word  ''aqueduct''  comes  from  two  Latin  words,  "aqua" 
which  means  "water,"  and  "ducere"  which  means  "to  lead."  An 
aqueduct,  therefore,  is  a  thing  built  to  lead  water. 

Reasons  for  Building  Aqueducts 

\\hen  a  place  is  first  settled,  as  will  be  seen  in  a  subsequent 
chapter  on  Xew  York's  early  water  supply,  the  people  depend 
upon  local  springs,  streams  and  wells  for  their  wrater  supply. 
As  the  town  grows,  and  the  number  of  people  increases,  the 
supply  from  those  primitive  sources  is  not  sufficient  and  it  is 
necessary  to  get  water  from  some  other  place.  At  the  same  time, 
with  the  growth  of  the  settlement,  the  local  sources  of  water 
become  defiled  and  cannot  be  used.  Therefore  it  is  necessary  to 
seek  pure  water  elsewhere  and  to  conduct  it  to  the  town  through 
a  channel  so  protected  that  it  cannot  be  spoiled  on  the  way. 

There  is  another  very  important  reason  for  building  an 
aqueduct.  Rain  does  not  fall  equally  in  all  parts  of  the  world: 
the  same  amount  does  not  fall  in  all  years ;  and  the  rain  at  a 
given  place  does  not  fall  evenly  at  all  times  of  the  year.  For 
instance,  in  some  parts  of  southwestern  Arizona  the  average 
annual  rainfall  or  "precipitation"*  in  some  years  is  only  an 
immeasurable  trace,  and  in  others  only  an  inch.  In  a  consider- 
able section  of  the  area  comprising  southern  Nevada,  south- 
eastern California,  western  Arizona  and  southwestern  Utah,  the 
average  annual  rainfall  is  only  2  inches  or  less.  On  the  other 
hand,  in  the  Mount  Olympus  region  in  northwestern  Washington 
there  is  an  average  annual  rainfall  of  120  inches.  The  average 
for  the  whole  United  States  is  variously  estimated  at  from  29  to 
31.46  inches.  The  average  for  Xew  York  City  is  44.63  inches 
a  year. 

Xow  a  total  annual  precipitation  of  44.63  inches  over  the 

*  "  Precipitation  "  is  measured  by  catching  the  rain  and  snow  in  a  vessel  with  ver- 
tical sides  and  open  at  the  top,  and  measuring  the  depth  of  the  water  and  melted  snow 
in  inches.  The  sum  of  all  the  measurements  during  a  year  is  the  total  precipitation. 


1 8  Aqueducts  and  Why  They  Are  Built 

area  of  315.9  square  miles  of  New  York  City  would  amount  to 
204,125,707,138  gallons,  or  an  average  of  about  559,000,000  gal- 
lons a  day;  and  even  if  it  could  be  collected  and  used  it  would 
not  be  sufficient,  for  'the  average  daily  consumption  of  the  city  is 
nearly  600,000,000  gallons.  But  it  could  not  all  be  collected ;  and 
if  it  could,  it  would  not  be  fit  to  use.  Furthermore,  it  does  not 
fall  in  regular  daily  quantities  of  just  559,000,000  gallons.  On 
October  8-9,  1903,  about  one-fifth  of  the  total  precipitation  of  the 
year  occurred  in  24  hours.  So  that  if  the  city  depended  on  'the 
rainfall  within  its  own  area,  it  would  have  more  water  than  it 
needed  some  days  and  none  at  all  on  other  days.  Again,  in  1916, 
the  total  annual  precipitation  in  New  York  City  was  only  33.17 
inches,  or  only  three-fourths  that  of  the  average  year,  and  it 
would  have  been  insufficient  even  if  it  could  have  been  collected 
and  used.  It  becomes  necessary,  therefore,  to  build  an  aqueduct 
leading  water  from  an  adequate  and  never-failing  source ;  or  to 
build  in  connection  with  the  aqueduct  dams  which  will  hold  back 
the  water  in  reservoirs  when  there  is  too  much  and  let  it  out  for 
use  when  otherwise  there  would  not  be  enough.  In  the  accounts 
of  the  Croton  and  Catskill  aqueducts  given  hereafter  it  will  be 
seen  how  great  artificial  lakes  have  been  made  for  this  purpose  of 
equalizing  the  supply. 

An  aqueduct  has  so  many  advantages  over  a  local  and  nat- 
ural water  supply  that  they  cannot  all  be  described  in  these  pages ; 
but  two  or  three  may  briefly  .be  mentioned.  One  is,  that  by  tak- 
ing the  water  from  high  sources,  it  rises  to  a  certain  height  in  our 
buildings  by  its  own  pressure ;  which  saves  the  expense  and  trouble 
of  pumping.  Water  supplied  by  an  aqueduct  can  also  be  handled, 
controlled  and  distributed  more  efficiently  than  water  derived  from 
innumerable  local  sources ;  and  it  can  be  kept  purer,  by  preventive 
measures  and  by  chemical  treatment,  than  a  local  supply. 

Early   Aqueducts 

People  began  at  a  very  early  period  to  realize,  in  a  dim  way, 
some  of  these  truths  and  to  take  artificial  measures  for  securing 
water.  Sometimes,  like  the  American  Indians  and  other  primi- 
tive peoples,  they  built  reservoirs  and  ditches  for  irrigation.*  As 
civilization  advanced  and  cities  began  to  grow  up,  channels  were 

*  An  interesting  example  is  the  so-called  Mummy  Lake,  recently  discovered  in  the 
Mesa  Verde  National  Park,  Colorado,  which  was  never  a  lake,  but  a  reservoir  for 
prehistoric  irrigation. 


Aqueducts  and   Why  They  Are   Built  19 

built  to  supply  water  for  domestic  use.  In  fact,  the  degree  of 
intelligence  with  which  any  people,  ancient  or  modern,  has  used 
water  may  almost  be  taken  as  a  measure  of  its  civilization.  Both 
Mexicans  and  Peruvians  had  attained  a  stage  of  culture  which 
led  them  to  build  aqueducts  before  the  advent  of  Europeans  in  the 
Xew  World.  The  best  known  Mexican  aqueduct  was  that  winch 
led  water  from  Chapultepec  to  Mexico  City.  It  was  about  a 
league  long.  But  the  Peruvians,  whose  culture  excelled  that  of 
the  Aztecs,  built  aqueducts  of  great  length.  Prescott  says,  "One 
that  traversed  the  district  of  Condesuyu  measured  between  four 
and  five  hundred  miles."  It  is  not  known  when  these  early 
Americans  began  to  build  aqueducts. 

The  earliest  aqueduct  of  which  the  present  writer  has  found 
a  precise  record  was  built  about  700  years  before  Christ  by 
Hezekiah  (King  of  Judah,  720-689  B.  C.)  to  supply  Jerusalem 
with  water.  There  was  formerly  a  surface  conduit  which  con- 
ducted the  water  of  the  river  Gihon  to  the  city,  but  in  anticipa- 
tion of  an  attack  from  the  Assyrians,  Hezekiah  built  an  under- 
ground tunnel  about  1,700  feet  long  to  carry  the  water  of  that 
stream  to  a  reservoir  or  pool  called  Siloam.  The  Pool  of  Siloam 
was  in  the  highway  of  the  fullers'  field  on  the  west  side  of  the 
city.  It  was  hewn  out  of  solid  rock  and  measured  71  feet  north 
and  south  and  75  feet  east  and  west.  Stone  steps  led  down  into 
it.  This  was  called  the  upper  pool.  Lower  down  the  valley 
Hezekiah  built  another  pool  to  receive  the  overflow  of  Siloam. 
The  aqueduct  was  discovered  by  Dr.  Schick  in  1886.  About  25 
feet  from  the  Pool  of  Siloam  an  old  Hebrew  inscription  tells 
realistically  of  the  meeting  of  the  twro  parties  working  toward 
each  other  in  constructing  the  tunnel.  Interesting  references  to 
this  primitive  aqueduct  are  to  be  found  in  II  Kings  xviii,  17,  and 
xx,  20;  II  Chronicles,  xxxii,  30;  and  Isaiah,  vii,  3. 

It  is  not  intended  to  give  here  a  history  of  aqueducts,  but 
to  cite  a  few  instances  in  order  that  the  reader  may  realize,  by 
comparison,  the  magnitude  of  the  Catskill  aqueduct.  With  the 
general  statement  that  the  building  of  aqueducts  had  been  prac- 
ticed in  Greece  and  the  older  civilizations  of  Asia  for  centuries 
before  the  first  Roman  aqueduct  was  built,  we  may  glance  at 
those  justly  famous  works  which  in  ancient  days  supplied  the 
Eternal  City  with  water. 

The  greatest  public  works  of  ancient  Rome,  to  which  the 


20  Aqueducts  and  Why  They  Are  Built 

city  and  empire  owed  much  of  their  greatness  and  power,  were 
roads,  aqueducts  and  drains.  As  for  the  aqueducts,  we  are  in- 
debted to  a  great  Water  Commissioner  of  the  first  century  for 
a  description  of  them.  In  the  year  97,  Emperor  Nerva  appointed 
as  Superintendent  of  Water  Works  Sextus  Julius  Frontinus,  a 
remarkable  administrator.  In  order  that  he  might  intelligently 
perform  his  duties,  Frontinus  made  a  study  of  the  Roman  aque- 
ducts and  wrote  a  description  of  them  in  two  books  entitled  "De 
Aquiis  Urbis  Romse"  ("Concerning  the  Waters  of  the  City  of 
Rome.")*  Near  the  beginning  of  his  work  he  names  the  nine 
aqueducts  then  existing.  He  says : 

"From  the  foundation  of  the  city  for  441  yearsjf  the  Romans 
were  content  with  the  use  of  the  waters  which  they  drew  either 
from  the  Tiber,  or  from  wells,  or  from  springs.  Springs  have 
held,  down  to  the  present  dayf  the  name  of  holy  things,  and  are 
objects  of  veneration,  having  the  repute  of  healing  the  sick;  as, 
for  example,  the  Springs  of  the  Camenae  (Prophetic  Nymphs), 
of  Apollo,  and  of  Juturna.  But  there  now  run  into  the  city :  the 
Appian  aqueduct,  Anio  Vetus,  Marcia,  Tepula,  Julia,  Virgo, 
Alsietina  which  is  also  called  Augusta,  Claudia  and  Anio  Novus.'r 

The  lengths  of  these  aqueducts  are  not  accurately  known. 
The  inscriptions  on  them  indicate  certain  distances ;  Frontinus 
gives  others;  and  measurements  based  on  existing  remains  indi- 
cate others.  The  differences  may  be  due  to  subsequent  changes 
of  locations,  or  to  different,  bases  of  calculation.  The  following 
are  their  dates  of  construction  and  approximate  lengths  :§ 

Miles 

Name  Built  Long 

Aqua  Appia  312  B.C.  10 

Aqua  Anio  Vetus  272-269  B.C.  43 

Aqua  Marcia  144-140  B.C.  58 

Aqua  Tepula  125  B.C.  17 

Aqua  Julia  33  B.C.  17 

Aqua  Virgo  19  B.C.  12 

Aqua  Alsietina  10  A.D.  20 

Aqua  Claudia  38-  52  A.D.  43 

Aqua  Anio  Novus  38-  52  A.D.  62   (?) 

*  A  facsimile  of  the  original,  a  translation  and  an  interesting  commentary  thereon 
are  to  be  found  in  "  The  Two  Books  on  the  Water  Supply  of  the  City  of  Rome  of 
Sextus  Julius  Frontinus,  Water  Commissioner  of  the  City  of  Rome  A.  D.  97,"  by 
Clemens  Herschel,  hydraulic  engineer,  published  in  1899  by  Dana  Estes  &  Co.,  of 
Boston. 

f  About  the  year  98  A.   D. 

§  Other  aqueducts  were  built  after  Frontinus'  time.  Of  the  four  aqueducts  which 
now  supply  Rome — Vergine,  Paola,  Marciapia,  and  Felice — three  of  them  are  dupli- 
cates or  reconstructions  of  Virgo,  Alsietina,  and  Marcia. 

tt  Until  the  year  313  1'..  < '. 


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22  Aqueducts  and  Why  They  Are  Built 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  longest  of  these  was  only  about  half 
the  length  of  the  Catskill  aqueduct.  Other  details  also  show  that 
even  the  best  of  them  was  not  comparable  with  the  Catskill  aque- 
duct as  an  engineering  achievement. 

The  oldest  of  them,  called  Appia,  took  its  water  from  a 
spring,  and  was  a  low-level  aqueduct.  All  of  its  ten  miles  except 
about  300  feet  was  built  just  below  the  surface  of  the  ground. 
It  was  made  of  rough-hewn  stones  about  18  by  18  by  42  inches 
in  size,  enclosing  a  passageway  about  2^  feet  wide  and  5  feet 
high;  and  was  not  much  more  than  a  walled  and  covered  sewer 
except  that  it  carried  clean  watej. 

Anio  Vetus  took  its  water  from  the  river  Anio.  It  was  about 
90  feet  higher  than  Appia  but  was  still  a  low-level  work.  Of  its 
43  miles,  a  portion  of  about  1,100  feet  was  on  an  artificial  struc- 
ture above  ground.  It  was  built  of  massive  masonry,  laid  in 
cement  and  plastered  on  the  inside.  Its  channel  was  about  3.7 
feet  wide  by  8  feet  high.  It  was  a  true  aqueduct,  being  carried 
skilfully  around  the  contours  of  mountains  so  as  to  maintain  the 
elevation  necessary  to  carry  the  water  to  the  city. 

Marcia  was  the  first  true  high-level  aqueduct.  It  carried 
spring  water  to  the  city  a  distance  of  nearly  58  miles.  It  had  an 
elevation  of  195  feet  above  sea-level.  It  was  built  of  rough-hewn 
stone,  but  Mr.  Clemens  Herschel  characterizes  it  from  the  remains 
he  has  examined,  as  showing  "the  commonplace  work  of  the 
rustic  ditch-builder."  Its  interior  was  5.7  feet  wide  and  8.3  high 
at  one  place,  and  varied  to  3  feet  by  5.7. 

Tepula,  about  17  miles  long,  was  built  of  homogeneous  con- 
crete, and  marks  the  beginning  of  the  use  of  that  material  in  which 
the  Roma'ns  were  very  skilful.  It  was  2.7  by  3.3  feet  in  cross 
section.  It  conducted  warm  water  from  volcanic  springs. 

Julia  was  about  the  same  length  as  Tepula,  and  followed  the 
same  course,  being  built  directly  on  top  of  the  earlier  aqueduct 
and  of  the  same  material.  Its  source  was  some  cold  springs 
a  little  beyond  the  warm  springs  of  Tepula. 

Virgo  was  a  low-level  aqueduct,  its  springs  being  only  about 
80  feet  above  sea  level.  It  was  only  about  1.6  feet  wide  by  6.6 
feet  high,  built  of  concrete  and  brick. 

Alsietina  brought  water  from  a  lake  of  that  name  about  20 
miles  from  Rome  and  about  680  feet  above  the  sea  level.  Con- 
crete and  brick  were  its  principal  materials. 


Aqueducts  and  Why  They  Are  Built  23 

Claudia  took  its  waters  from  three  springs  not  far  from  the 
source  of  .Marcia,  but  was  only  about  43  miles  long.  A  short 
distance  from  its  intake  its  cross  section  was  about  3.3  feet  by 
6.6  fet-t  high.  This  aqueduct  is  particularly  interesting,  because 
it  marks  the  highest  development  of  the  skill  of  the  Romans  in 
hydraulic  engineering.  It  was  constructed  mainly  of  stone  cut 

^ular  dimensions.  Built  at  the  same  time  with  Anio  Vetus, 
the  two  cost  55.5  sestertii  or  nearly  $3,000,000,  or  about  $6  a 
running  foot,  with  slave  labor.  It  had  a  tunnel  about  3  feet  wide 
by  7  feet  high  and  three  miles  long  through  Mount  Affliano.  The 
tunnelling  through  the  rock  was  by  the  primitive  means  of  chisel- 
ling, and  by  heating  the  rocks  and  chilling  them  with  water, 
causing  them  to  crack.  Claudia  crossed  the  Campagna  on  stately 
stone  arches  the  ruins  of  which  are  standing  today  and  look  like 
the  High  Bridge  of  the  Croton  aqueduct  across  the  Harlem 
River,  except  that  the  arches  of  Claudia  have  only  18  or  20  feet 
span  and  the  piers  are  only  about  8  feet  thick  in  elevation,  while 
the  High  Bridge  arches  have  spans  cf  50  and  80  feet  according 
to  location  and  the  piers  are  proportionately  thick. 

Anio  Xovus  was  built  of  brick  lined  with  concrete  and  was 
about  62  miles  long.  Some  authorities  say  only  52.  Its  cross 
section  was  3.3  feet  wide  by  9  feet  high.  It  took  its  waters  from 
a  series  of  reservoirs  constructed  by  damming  rivers  very  much 
after  the  fashion  of  modern  storage  reservoirs,  only  on  a  smaller 
scale.  Part  of  the  way  it  was  built  on  the  structure  of  Claudia. 
In  fact,  some  of  the  old  Roman  ruins  show  portions  of  four  or 
live  different  aqueducts  built  on  top  of  each  other. 

The  Roman  aqueduct  represented  the  open  cut,  cut-and-cover, 
tunnel  and  overhead  forms  of  construction  and  employed  as 
materials  rough  stones  rudely  mortised  together  (Anio  Vetus), 
stones  cut  to  regular  dimensions,  bricks  and  concrete.  Some- 
times the  exterior  was  ornamental  with  a  kind  of  masonry  called 
"opus  reticulatum,"  consisting  of  stones  about  six  inches  square, 
inlaid  in  concrete  with  their  lines  diagonal,  producing  a  tile- 
like  effect.  The  roofs  of  the  conduits  )vere  sometimes  flat,  some- 
times arched,  and  sometimes  shaped  like  an  inverted  V,  the 
latter  bein^  made  of  slabs  of  stone  inclined  against  each  other. 
These  different  forms  of  roof  were  used  promiscuously  in  the 
same  works  and  do  not  appear  to  have  any  chronological  value. 
The  interior  of  the  aqueducts  was  lined  with  concrete  to  make 


24  Aqueducts  and  Why  They  Are    Built 

them  water-tight.  At  -  intervals  there  were  chambers  •  called 
"piscinae,"  evidently  used  for  collecting  sediment;  and  shafts  for 
ventilation,  inspection  and  cleaning.  The  speed  of  the  current 
of  water  was  checked  in  some  of  the  aqueducts  by  contracting 
the  size  of  channel,  or  by  abrupt  turns  in  the  course  of  the 
aqueduct.  Inscribed  stones  were  set  up  at  various  places,  giving 
distances  from  the  city,  dates  of  construction  and  repair,  and 
names  of  rulers. 

The  Romans  knew  the  principle  of  the  inverted  siphon  and 
used  it  on  a  small  scale  in  their  distribution  system,  but  rarely 
resorted  to  it  in  their  main  conduits.  The  Catskill  aqueduct 
employs  this  principle  to  such  an  elaborate  extent  in  passing 
under  deep  valleys  and  rivers  that  none  of  it  is  above  ground. 
The  great  inverted  siphon  of  the  Catskill  aqueduct  which  passes 
under  the  Hudson  river  at  Storm  King  1,114  feet  below  sea-level 
is  infinitely  beyond  any  accomplishment  of  the  Romans. 

The  cross-sections  of  the  Roman  aqueducts  indicate  their 
smallness  compared  with  the  Catskill  aqueduct  which  has 
diameters  as  great  as  \7l/2  feet.  The  cross-section  area  of.  the 
Catskill  aqueduct  is  six'  or  seven  times  the  size  of  the  largest 
Roman  aqueduct.  As  to  capacity,  Mr.  Clemens  Herschel,  in  his 
work  before  mentioned,  estimates  that  when  all  nine  Roman 
aqueducts  were  in  operation — which  was  not  always  the  case,  as 
two  or  three  might  be  out  of  commission  at  the  same  time — 
they  had  an  aggregate  capacity  of  about  84,000,000  gallons  a 
day;  but  as  much  water  was  lost  or  stolen  on  the  way,  or  pur- 
posely diverted  outside  the  city,  only  about  39,000,000  gallons 
a  day  on  the  average  was  delivered  inside  the  walls  of  the  city 
in  the  time  Frontinus.  The  single  Catskill  aqueduct  has  a 
capacity  of  500,000,000  gallons  a  day. 

When  the  Roman  aqueducts  crossed  the  low  Campagna  on 
masonry  arches  they  have  left  impressive  monuments.  The  Cats- 
kill  aqueduct  has  avoided  such  exposed  structures  for  purposes 
of  safety,  and  instead  of  building  arcades  to  pass  over  valleys 
and  rivers,  has  inverted  siphons  to  pass  under  them.  The  aque- 
duct ruins  on  the  Campagna  (see  page  15),  like  the  Roman  aque- 
duct at  Segovia,  Spain,  and  the  Pont  du  Gard  near  Nismes, 
France,*  and  others  which  might  be  mentioned,  give  an  impres- 

*  The  aqueduct  at  Segovia,  built  A.  D.  109,  is  8  feet  wide  and  2,700  feet  long  and 
at  places  consists  of  a  double  tier  of  stone  arches  95  feet  high.  It  is  still  in  use.  The 
Pont  du  Gard  is  part  of  a  Roman  aqueduct  built  in  the  year  19  B.  C.  It  crosses  the 
Gard  river  on  a  three-storied  arcade  180  feet  high  and  873  feet  long.  It  is  esti- 
mated that  the  ruins  of  over  200  aqueducts  built  by  the  Romans  in  their  extensive 
provinces  still  exist. 


Aqueducts  and  Why  They  Are   Built  25 

sion  of  massiveness  and  durability,  and,  above  all,  of  the  force 
of  intellect  that  was  behind  them  and  extended  the  Roman 
Empire  to  such  vast  dimensions. 

Frontinus,  in  his  "De  Aquiis  Urbis  Romae"  sarcastically 
ounpares  the  "idle  "pyramids  and  the  other  useless  but  much 
renowned  works  of  the  Greeks"  with  the  great  utilitarian  and 
indispensable  structures  of  these  aqueducts,  when  he  says :  "Tot 
aquarum  tarn  multis  necessariis  molibus  pyramidas  videlicet 
otiosas  conpares  aut  cetera  inertia  sed  fama  celebrata  opera 
Graecorum/' 

But  wonderful  as  the  Roman  aqueducts  were,  they  were  not 
the  equals,  in  size  or  the  difficulty  of  the  engineering  difficulties 
overcome,  of  the  Catskill  aqueduct,  which  is  the  greatest  engi- 
neering feat  of  its  kind  in  the  world. 


Chapter  III. 
Manhattan's  Primitive  Water  Supply 


The  Era  of  Pumps  and  Wells 

The  natural  water  supply  of  New  Amsterdam  and  of  New 
York  City  in  its  early  years  was  derived  from  the  ponds,  brooks 
and  springs  which  abounded  on  the  island  of  Manhattan  before 
they  were  obliterated  by  the  construction  of  streets  and  build- 
ings. Some  of  the  ponds  afforded  good  fishing,  and  there  are 
people  living  today  who  remember  the  existence  of  Sunfish  pond 
at  Madison  avenue  and  32d  street,  Stuyvesant's  pond  and  Cedar 
ponds,  which  as  late  as  1860  were  favorite  resorts  for  skating.* 

Most  of  these  ponds,  springs  and  streams  which  once 
sparkled  in  the  landscape  have  been  obliterated  by  modern  im- 
provements, but  a  few  of  them  may  still  be  observed  in  Central 
Park,  and  on  the  unbuilt  portions  of  the  upper  end  of  the  island. 
(See  page  21.) 

The  earliest  artificial  supply  was  derived  from  wells.  The 
geological  formation  of  the  lower  end  of  Manhattan  island  was 
not  favorable  for  obtaining  good  water,  however.  .The  rock 
bottom  of  the  island  is  covered  with  alluvial  deposits  which 
appear  to  have  been  permeated  easily  with  water  from  the  salt 
rivers;  while  at  the  same  time  the  absence  of  a  sewer  system  in 
the  early  history  of  the  town  permitted  much  unwholesome  matter 
to  find  its  way  into  the  ground.  When  we  read  that  "tubbs  of 
odour  and  nastiness"  were  emptied  in  the  street§  it  is  not  sur- 
prising that  the  wells  were  not  only  generally  unpleasant  to  the 
taste,  but,  as  we  shall  see,  were  also  undoubtedly  at  times  highly 
unsanitary. 

The  wells  were  of  the  kind  in  the  use  of  old  country  at  that 
period,  surmounted  by  a  long  pole  which  was  balanced  at  one 
end  with  a  counterpoise  and  had  at  the  other  end  a  chain  rope 
to  which  the  bucket  was  attached. 

As  may  well  be  imagined,  the  abundance  of  water  from  both 
the  wells  and  the  natural  springs  was  subject  to  fluctuations  on 
account  of  the  weather.  As  a  single  instance,  we  may  cite  the 

*  FFaswell's  Reminiscences,  p.   541. 
§  Common   Council   minutes,    1700. 


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28  Manhattan's    Primitive    Water    Supply 

experience  of  the  British  troops  on  the  upper  end  of  the  island 
in  the  year  1782.  In  September  of  that  year,  there  was  a  great 
drouth  which  generally  inconvenienced  and  alarmed  the  troops. 
Lieut.  Von  Krafft  of  Von  Donop's  Hessian  regiment,  who  kept 
a  diary,  records  under  ^late  of  September  3,  of  that  year: 

"This  afternoon  our  foragers  and  sharpshooters  returned. 
They  had  measured  at  the  camp  but  could  find  no  water  on 
account  of  the  great  heat  of  this  year  which  had  dried  up  every- 
thing." 

The  next  day  men  were  sent  out  to  dig  wells,  but  they  could 
not  find  anything  but  the  faintest  and  poorest  springs,  even  at  a 
depth  of  30  or  40  feet.  "All  the  wells  and  ditches  round  about 
were  dried  up."  On  September  27  "There  was  a  general  com- 
plaint that  all  the  men  would  die  soon  for  want  of  water." 

The  earliest  wells  were  private  enterprises,  dug  within  the 
owners'  enclosures,  although  it  was  the  custom  for  several  neigh- 
bors to  join  in  meeting  the  expense  of  a  well  which  they  used 
in  common.  The  establishment  of  a  public  well  was  first  pro- 
posed in  1658  during  the  incumbency  of  Peter  Stuyvesant  as 
Director  General.  At  the  meeting  of  the  Burgomasters  held  on 
July  11,  1658,  the  "Burgomasters  resolved  to  communicate  with 
the  General  relative  to  having  a  public  well  made  in  the  Heere 
straat."*  The  Heere  straat  was  Broadway.  It  does  not  appear 
whether  this  proposed  well  was  constructed.  It  is  a  remarkable 
fact  that  at  the  time  of  the  surrender  of  Fort  Amsterdam  to  the 
English  in  1664,  there  was  no  well  or  cistern  in  the  fort,  although 
just  before  the  appearance  of  the  English,  "it  was  hastily  pro- 
vided with  20  or  24  water  barrels  or  pitched  casks  removed  from 
the  ships  and  filled  with  water."§  In  1667,  Gov.  Nicolls 
repaired  this  defect  by  digging  a  well  in  the  fort  which  supplied 
excellent  water,  much  to  the  surprise  of  the  old  inhabitants, 
whose  previous  neglect  in  this  respect  may  have  been  due  to  their 
belief  that  potable  water  could  not  be  found  there.  Later  a  well 
was  dug  outside  the  sally-port  of  the  fort  at  the  foot  of  Bowling 
Green  and  if  became  a  great  resort  for  the  inhabitants  who  were 
not  otherwise  supplied.  The  pump  installed  in  this  well  is  the 
first  recorded  in  the  city's  history. 

In  1677,  under  the  English,  the  Common  Council  began  the 
systematic  construction  of  wells  in  the  public  streets.  On  Febr- 

*   Records   of    New   Amsterdam,    vii,    190. 

§  Stuyvesant's  answer.     Doc.  Rel.  Col.  Hist.  N.  Y.,  ii,   441. 


Manhattan's    Primitive    Water    Supply  29 

nary  28.  1676-77  they  ordered  that  "Severall  \Yeells  bee  made 
in  the  places  hereafter  menconed  (for  the  publique  good  of  the 
Cytie)  by  the  inhabitants  of  Each  Street  where  the  said  wells 
shall  bee  made,  Yiztt :" — one  in  the  street  opposite  the  butcher 
Roeoliff  Johnson's  house;  one  in  Broadway  opposite  Hendrick 
Van  Dyke's ;  one  in  Smith  street  opposite  John  Cavileer's ;  one 
in  the  \Yater  Side  opposite  Cornells  Van  Borsum's ;  and  one  in 
the  back  yard  of  the  City  Hall  at  73  Pearl  street.  The  latter  was 
the  first  stone  well. 

On  September  10,  1686,  the  Common  Council  ordered  nine 
more  wells  to  be  built.  These  wrere  built  of  stone,  "one  halfe  of 
the  Charge  of  them  to  be  borne  by  the  inhabitants  of  every 
Streete  proportionately  and  the  other  halfe  by  the  Citty."  One 
or  two  citizens  were  appointed  to  have  charge  of  each  well.  The 
practice  of  dividing  the  expense  between  the  beneficiaries  and  the 
city  was  continued  as  long  as  the  public  well  system  existed. 

Seme  of  the  wells  at  the  end  of  the  17th  century  became 
well  known  by  name  and  their  locations  have  been  pretty  well 
identified.  Among  them  were  the  following: 

Xante.  Location. 

De  Riemer's  Well Whitehall  street,  near  Bridge. 

William  Cox's  Well Near  Stadt  Huys,  at  head  of  Coenties 

Slip. 

Ten  Eyck  and  Vincent's  Well ....  Broad  street   between  Stone  and  South 

William  streets. 

Tunis  de  Kay's  Well Broad  street,  north  of  Beaver 

Frederick  Wessel's  Well Wall  street,  west  of  William  street. 

Rombout's  Well Broadway,  near  Exchange  Place  street, 

Suert  Olpherts'  Well Near  last  mentioned. 

Many  other  wells  were  dug  in  later  years  and  may  be  identi- 
fied by  reference  to  the  Common  Council  minutes  and  maps. 

Pumps  came  into  fashion  in  the  first  half  of  the  18th  century 
and  rapidly  displaced  the  old  well-sweeps.  After  the  city  had 
bought  its  first  fire-engines  mentioned  hereafter,  it  became  par- 
ticularly necessary  to  maintain  the  water  supply  and  in 
November,  1741,  the  Assembly  enacted  a  law  (chapter  719) 
entitled  "An  act  for  mending  and  keeping  in  repair  the  publick 
wells  and  pumps  in  the  City  of  Xcw  York."  This  law  pro- 
vided for  the  appointment  of  Overseers  of  \Yells  and  Pumps, 
the  levying  of  taxes  for  their  maintenance,  etc.  Disorderly  per- 
sons frequently  cut  the  ropes  of  the  wells,  broke  the  pump- 


30  Manhattan's    Primitive    Water    Supply 

handles  and  did  other  mischief  of  a  similar  nature,  and  the  same 
law  provided  penalties  for  such  offences. 

Sometimes  a  public  spirit  citizen  would  give  a  well  and 
pump  to  the  city  if  the  corporation  would  agree  to  keep  it  in 
repair.  Henry  Rutgers  made  such  an  offer  to  give  a  well  and 
pump  in  the  Out  ward  in  December,  1785.  But  generally  the 
expense  of  the  well  and  pump  was  jointly  borne  by  the  City  and 
the  neighborhood. 

To  give  an  idea  of  how  these  matters  were  managed  at  the 
beginning  of  the  American  period  after  the  evacuation  of  Xew 
York  by  the  British  we  may  cite  a  few  transactions  of  the  Com- 
mon Council. 

On  August  26,  1784,  for  instance,  the  inhabitants  of  Frank- 
fort street  petitioned  for  a  well  and  pump  and  it  was  granted. 
The  city's  share  of  the  first  cost  of  this  well  and  pump  was 
£39:16:15.  The  cost  of  digging  a  well  varied  according  to  cir- 
cumstances. In  October,  1784,  Silvanus  Seely  was  paid  £4:11:3 
for  digging  a  well  in  the  South  ward,  but  Phil  Arcularius  was 
paid  £40:19:6  for  digging  one  in  Frankfort  street  in  1785.  On 
November  11,  1784,  the  Common  Council  authorized  a  well  in 
Catharine  street  and  voted  to  contribute  £7  toward  it,  later  adding 
£8  more.  In  July,  1785,  the  inhabitants  of  Greenwich .  street 
were  given  permission  to  sink  two  wells  at  their  own  expense, 
the  corporation  furnishing  the  pumps.  In  a  similar  way  in 
August,  1785,  the  inhabitants  of  Chambers  street  were  permitted 
to  make  a 'well  and  stone  it  at  their  expense,  the  pump  being  at 
the  expense  of  the  corporation. 

These  street  pumps  were  landmarks,  very  much  like  street 
monuments  to-day,  and  formed  convenient  points  of  reference. 
For  instance,  when  the  Common  Council  decided  in  May,  1785, 
to  grade  Broadway  southward  from  Exchange  place,  it  voted 
that  there  should  be  a  "gentle  descent  from  the  upper  pump  to 
the  Howling  Green."  The  ".upper  pump"  was  at  Broadway  and 
Exchange  place.  (See  picture  of  pumps  in  Broad  Street  on  page 
27.) 

On  April  5,  1785  William  Smith  contracted  to  keep  the 
wells  and  pumps  in  repair  at  the  rate  of  £140  per  annum;  but 
Smith's  job  was  not  a  profitable  one;  the  number  of  pumps  and 
wells  was  rapidly  increasing  and  the  cost  of  repair  mounting  with 
equal  pace.  The  Common  Council,  therefore,  devised  the  system 
of  electing  two  Overseers  of  pumps  and  wells  for  each  ward; 
but  evidently  these  new  functionaries  occasionally  neglected  their 


Manhattan's    Primitive    Water    Supply          31 

duties,  for  on  September  16,  1789,  the  Common  Council 
"Ordered  that  whenever  the  Overseers  of  the  Public  Wells  and 
Pumps  neglect  or  refuse  to  do  their  duty  that  the  Aldn  &  Assist 
of  the  \Yard  direct  the  necessary  Repairs;  lest  by  the  want  of 
water  from  the  public  wells  and  pumps  the  City  may  be  endan- 
gered in  case  of  Fire." 

During  the  year  1789  the  Common  Council  approved  for 
payment  bills  for  repairs  to  wells  and  pumps  amounting  to 
£408:15:5^. 

The   Tea  Water   Pump 

The  water  from  the  wells  in  the  lower  part  of  the  city  served 
well  enough  for  ordinary  domestic  uses,  except  drinking,  but,  as 
we  said  before,  was  brackish  and  disagreeable  to  the  taste.  Some 
time  during  the  first  half  of  the  18th  century,  however,  a  spring 
of  fresh  water  on  the  north  side  of  the  present  Park  row,  be- 
tween Baxter  and  Mulberry  streets,  began  to  attract  popular 
attention.  This  spring  was  probably  supplied  by  the  same  under- 
ground sources  that  supplied  the  neighboring  Fresh  Water  or 
Collect  pond.  The  water  was  so  desirable  for  making  tea  that 
it  became  famous  in  history  as  the  Tea  W'ater  Pump.  Indeed, 
it  became  a  regular  landmark  and  has  left  its  impress  on  the 
real  estate  records  of  that  neighborhood.  The  property  described 
in  deeds  as  the  "Tea  Water  Pump"  was  a  parcel  75  feet  by  120 
feet  on  the  north  side  of  Chatham  street  (Park  row)  beginning 
28  feet  east  of  Baxter  street.  A  deed  containing  a  reference  to 
it  as  the  "Tea  Water  Pump,"  is  dated  June  1,  1795,"  and  there 
is  another  of  the  same  description  in  liber  169,  page  334.  The 
description  there  is :  "Which  said  three  lots,  pieces  or 
parcels  of  ground  are  known  by  the  name  or  description  of 
the  'Tea  Wrater  Pump'  or  the  Estate  of  Gerardus  Hardenbrook, 
Sr.,  deceased."  The  same  description  or  a  similar  one  is  found 
in  later  deeds,  among  which  are  those  to  be  found  in  liber  55, 
page  395 ;  liber  65,  page  102 ;  liber  66,  page  454,  and  liber  68, 
page  225.  The  property  was  afterwards  sold  in  parts.  Gerardus 
Hardenbrook  left  a  will  dated  1755  and  recorded  in  liber  33  of 
wills,  page  533.  About  1796  William  C.  Thompson,  a  grand- 
son, acquired  the  majority  interest  and  is  undoubtedly  the  Mr. 
Thompson  referred  to  hereafter  and  in  Valentine's  Manual  for 
page  438.  Abraham  Shoemaker  referred  to  hereafter  and 

*  Liber   170  of   deeds,   p.    7. 


32  Manhattan's    Primitive    Water   Supply 

on  the  same  page  in  Valentine's  Manual  afterwards  acquired  at 
least  the  central  part  of  the  75  foot  tract  from  Thompson  and 
others.  Valentine's  authority  for  designating  the  property  as  No, 
126  Chatham  street  (the  old  name  for  Park  row),  does  not 
appear.  No.  126  Chatham  street  as  shown  in  deeds  of  the  middle 
of  the  nineteenth  century  would  be  east  of  Mulberry  street.  If 
there  was  a  numbering  of  the  street  that  would  bring  No.  126 
near  Baxter  street,  it  has  not  been  found.  The  site  of  the  pump, 
however,  is  well  established  by  the  deeds  referred  to. 

The  first  mention  of  the  Tea  Water  spring  is  in  the  diary 
of  Professor  Kalm,  a  learned  and  observant  man  who  visited  the 
City  in  1748.  He  says: 

"There  is  no  good  water  to  be  met  with  in  the  town  itself ; 
but  at  a  little  distance  there  is  a  large  spring  of  good  water, 
which  the  inhabitants  take  for  their  tea  and  for  the  uses  of  the 
kitchen.  Those,  however,  who  are  less  delicate  on  this  point 
make  use  of  the  water  from  the  wells  in  town,  though  it  be 
very  bad.  The  want  of  good  water  lies  heavy  upon  the  horses 
of  the  strangers  that  come  to  this  place  for  they  do  not  like  to 
drink  the  water  from  the  wells  of  the  town." 

Shortly  before  the  Revolution  the  Tea  Water  spring  and 
its  vicinity  were  made  into  a  fashionable  resort  at  which  bev- 
erages adulterated  with  pure  water  could  be  obtained.  A  high 
pump  with  a  prodigiously  long  handle  was  erected  over  the  spring, 
and  the  grounds  around  it  were  laid  out  in  ornamental  fashion 
and  called  the  Tea  Water  Pump  Garden. 

The  tea  water  from  this  source  was  so  popular  that  not 
only  did  people  come  to  the  pump  for  it,  but  it  was  delivered 
around  town  in  carts  which  looked  something  like  modern 
sprinkling-wagons  without  the  sprinkler.  The  distributors  of 
this  water  were  called  "tea-water  men,"  and  became  so  numer- 
ous and  active  that  on  June  16,  1757,  the  Common  Council  had 
to  pass  "A  Law  for  the  Regulating  of  Teawater  men  in  the  City 
of  New  York." 

At  length,  the  big  pump  projecting  over  the  street  and  the 
crowd  of  water-wagons  gathered  there  became  so  great  an  ob- 
struction to  the  street  that  in  1797  a  petition  for  an  abatement 
of  the  nuisance  was  presented  to  the  Common  Council.  The 
committee  to  whom  the  subject  was  referred  reported  as  follows : 

"The  committee  on  the  subject  of  the  petition  complaining 
of  the  obstruction  in  Chatham  street  caused  by  the  Tea  Water 
Pump  delivering  its  water  in  the  street  and  by  the  water  carts- 


33 


34  Manhattan's    Primitive    Water   Supply 

drawn  up  across  the  street  when  about  to  receive  water,  report 
that  they  have  viewed  the  premises  and  find  the  matters  and 
things  set  forth  in  the  petitions  to  be  true.  That  the  committee 
have  maturely  considered  the  premises  and  are  of  opinion  that 
the  said  obstruction  may  be  removed  at  no  great  expense  to 
Mr.  Thompson,  the  present  occupant  and  part  proprietor  of  the 
premises,  by  causing  the  spout  of  the  said  pump  to  be  raised 
about  two  feet  and  by  lengthening  it  so  as  to  deliver  the  water 
at  the  outer  part  of  the  paved  walk,  which  would  permit  pas- 
sengers to  pass  under  without  inconvenience ;  and  if  the  water 
carts  were  ordered  to  draw  up  abreast  of  the  spout  near  the 
.gutter  and  receive  the  water  in  rotation  it  would  remove  the 
obstruction  in  the  street."  The  committee  recommended  also 
that  the  sidewalks  in  that  vicinity  be  paved. 

The  recommendations  of  the  committee,  except  that  relat- 
ing to  paving,  were  adopted,  the  paving  being  postponed  for  the 
time  being. 

In  1805  Abram  Shoemaker  petitioned  to  the  Common  Coun- 
cil for  leave  to  erect  works  so  as  to  conduct  the  water  of  the 
late  Tea  Water  Pump  into  carts  in  Orange  street  (now  Baxter 
street)  as  they  formerly  took  the  water  from  Chatham  street, 
by  which  inconvenience  would  be  avoided,  and  the  petition  was 
allowed  during  the  pleasure  of  the  Common  Council. 

It  is  amusing,  in  these  modern  days  when  the  city  authori- 
ties are  concerning  themselves  with  a  great  aqueduct  system 
capable  of  delivering  500,000,000  gallons  of  water  a  day  to  the 
city,  to  read  of  the  Common  Council  passing  solemn  resolutions 
about  the  length  of  the  Tea  Water  Pump  spout. 

The  Primitive  Fire  Department 

While  the  primitive  conditions  of  the  water  supply  just 
described  existed,  there  was  an  equally  primitive  system  of  fire 
extinguishing.  When  one  recalls  the  inflammable  character  of 
the  earliest  buildings  in  New  Amsterdam  and  the  inadequate 
means  for  fire  protection,  it  is  a  wonder  that  the  infant  city 
was  not  destroyed  several  times. 

During  the  Dutch  regime  there  were  a  few  stone  store- 
houses and  several  brick  houses  belonging  to  the  more  wealthy 
residents;  but  most  of  the  buildings  were  of  wood.  To  add  to 
their  inflammability,  the  roofs  of  a  majority  of  the  early  houses 
were  thatched  with  straw  or  reeds,  and  their  chimneys  were 
made  of  wood  or  of  interwoven  twigs  plastered  with  clay. 


Manhattan's    Primitive    Water    Supply  35 

Xo  machine  for  projecting  water  upon  a  fire  existed  in 
Xe\v  Amsterdam.  If  a  fire  broke  out,  a  bucket  brigade  was 
formed.  Men  stood  in  single  or  double  file  between  the  fire 
and  the  nearest  source  of  water,  and  passed  buckets  filled  with 
water  to  the  scene  of  the  conflagration,  sending  the  empty 
buckets  back  by  the  second  line  of  men  if  there  was  a  second 
line. 

Twenty-two  years  after  New  Amsterdam  was  settled,  the 
occurrence  of  fires  in  two  houses,  owing  to  carelessness  in  the 
care  of  fire-places  and  chimneys,  aroused  the  authorities  to  the 
necessity  of  organizing  means  of  protection.  They  therefore 
ordered  on  January  23,  1648,  that  from  that  time  forward  no 
more  wooden  or  platted  chimneys  should  be  erected  between  the 
''fort  and  the  fresh  water," — that  is  to  say,  between  the  sites 
of  the  present  United  States  custom  house  and  the  Tombs  prison, 
— and  four  fire  wardens  were  appointed  to  see  that  the  ordinance 
was  enforced.  The  fines  for  violating  this  ordinance  were  to 
be  devoted  to  the  purchase  of  fire  ladders,  hooks  and  buckets, 
to  be  procured  in  Holland  at  the  first  opportunity.  In  1657, 
the  following  notice  was  given : 

"Xotice  is  hereby  given,  that  for  the  purpose  of  preventing 
calamities  by  fire,  they  long  since  condemned  all  flag  roofs, 
wooden  or  platted  chimneys  within  this  City,  and  to  that  end 
they  appointed  Fire  \Yardens  and  Inspectors  of  Buildings,  which 
ordinance  has  been  and  is  at  present  neglected  by  the  inhabitants 
and  in  consequence  thereof  several  fires  have  occurred  and  more 
are  to  be  apprehended — yes,  indeed,  to  the  entire  destruction  of 
the  City, — so  that  it  is  necessary  to  make  provision  in  the  case. 
To  which  end,  the  Director  General  and  Councillors  do  ordain 
that  all  flag  roofs,  wooden  chimneys,  hay  barracks  and  hay  stacks 
shall  be  taken  down  and  removed  within  four  months  after  the 
publication  of  these  presents,  under  the  penalty  of  twentyfive 
guilders  for  every  month's  delay ;  and  this  penalty  shall  be  claimed' 
for  every  house,  great  or  small,  with  reed  roof,  hay  barrack  or 
hay  stack,  or  wooden  chimney  within  the  walls  of  the  City.  Hen- 
houses and  hog-pens  shall  be  included." 

But  the  safety  of  the  city  was  not  to  be  secured  by  ordinance 
alone.  Fire  extinguishing  apparatus  was  necessary.  Therefore, 
in  December,  1657,  the  Burgomasters  and  Schepens  adopted  the 
following  order,  reflecting  the  custom  of  the  old  country  in  that 
matter: 

"\Yhereas,  in  all  well-regulated  cities  it  is  customary  that 
fire-buckets,  ladders  and  hooks  are  in  readiness  at  the  corners 


3.6  Manhattan's    Primitive    Water   Supply 

of  the  streets  and  in  public  houses  for  time  of  need,  which  is 
the  more  necessary  in  this  City  on  account  of  the  small  number 
of  stone  houses  and  many  that  are  built  of  wood,  therefore  it 
shall  be  required  immediately  that  for  every  house  small  or  large 
shall  be  paid  one  beaver  or  eight  guilders  in  seawant,*  out  of 
which  funds  shall  be  procured  from  fatherland  250  leather  fire- 
buckets  ;  and  we  shall  also  have  made  some  fire-ladders  and  fire- 
hooks.  In  order  to  maintain  the  same  in  good  order,  there  shall 
afterwards  be  a  yearly  demand  of  one  guilder  for  every  chimney 
in  a  house." 

It  was  proposed  that  instead  of  sending  to  Holland  for  the 
buckets  they  be  made  in  the  City  and  on  August  1,  1658,  four 
shoe-makers  of  the  town, — an  important  as  well  as  necessary 
craft  at  that  time — were  requested  to  meet  the  authorities  and 
consider  the  matter.  The  contract  was  tendered  to  Coenraet  Ten 
Eyck,  but  he  declined  it.  Pieter  Van  Haalen  declared  that  he 
had  not  the  materials  with  which  to  make  the  buckets.  Reinout 
Reinoutsen,  however,  undertook  to  make  100  buckets  and  Arian 
Van  Laar  50  buckets  between  that  date  and  All  Saints  day 
(November  1).  The  buckets  were  all  to  be  made  of  tanned 
leather  in  the  most  complete  manner,,  and  for  each  they  were  to 
be  paid  six  guilders  and  ten  stuyvers,  half  in  beaver-skins  and 
half  in  wampum.  By  January  20,  1659,  125  of  the  150  buckets 
were  finished,  taken  to  the  City  Haall  or  Stadt  Huys  at  Xo.  73 
Pearl  street  and  numbered. 

It  was  ordered  that  the  150  be  distributed  as  follows,  the 
assignments  really  totalling  152. 

From     1  to    50.     In  the  City  Hall ...... 50 

From   50  to   62.     Daniel    Litscho 12 

From    63  to  74.    Abraham  Planck's  house  in  Smith's  Valley 12 

From   75  to   86.    Joannes   Pietersen  Verbruggen 12 

From   87  to  98.     Paulus  Leenderzen  Vander  Grift 12 

From   99  to  110.     Nicasius  de  Sille  in  the  sheep's  pasture 12 

From  111  to  122.     Pieter  Wolferzen  van  Couwenhoven 12 

From      1  to    12.    Jan  Janzen  the  younger 10 

From    13  to   24.     Hendrick  Hendrickzen  Kip,  the  elder 10 

From   25  to    36.    Jacobus    Backer 10 

David  T.  Valentine,  in  his  Manual  for  1856  at  pages  253- 
254,  locates  the  above  places  with  reference  to  modern  streets 
as  follows:  Litscho's  tavern  in  Pearl  street  near  Wall;  Planck's 
(or  Verplanck's)  house  in  Pearl  street  near  Fulton;  Verb  rug- 
gen's  in  Hanover  square;  Van  der  Grift's  in  Broadway  nearly 

*  Wampum. 


Manhattan's    Primitive.  Water  Supply          37 

opposite  Exchange  place ;  DeSille's  on  the  southeast  corner  of 
Broad  street  and  Exchange  place;  Van  Couwenhoven's  on  the 
northeast  corner  of  Whitehall  and  Pearl  streets ;  Kip's  on  the 
north  side  of  Bridge  street  between  Whitehall  and  Broad;  and 
Backer's  on  the  east  side  of  Broad  between  Stone  and  South 
William. 

Under  the  English  regime  the  pump,  well  and  bucket  system 
was  somewhat  elaborated  in  detail,  but  remained  the  same  in 
principle  for  many  years.  In  1687  every  inhabitant  who  had  a 
house  with  two  chimneys  was  required  to  provide  one  fire-bucket 
for  his  house,  and  if  he  had  more  than  two  hearths  he  was 
required  to  keep  two  buckets.  Bakers  were  obliged  to  have  three 
buckets  and  brewers  six.  At  an  alarm  of  fire,  everybody  who 
had  buckets  ran  to  the  scene,'  and  it  was  inevitable  that  their 
buckets  should  get  mixed  up.  It  was  therefore  customary  after 
a  fire  for  the  Town  Crier  to  give  notice  of  a  general  exchange  of 
buckets  which  had  gotten  into  the  wrong  hands. 

As  the  eighteenth  century  advanced,  the  inadequacy  of  the 
"bucket  brigade"  began  to  impress  itself  on  the  citizens  as  the 
news  of  Xewsham's  pumping  engines  in  England  became  better 
known,  and  on  October  17,  1730,  the  sentiment  in  favor  of  the 
introduction  of  fire-engines  into  this  country  took  shape  in  an 
act  passed  by  the  Assembly  (chapter  550)  which  contained  the 
following  declaration  among  others : 

"The  Repairing  of  the  said  City  Hall,*  Repairing  and  En- 
larging the  Goals  and  Prisons,  Erecting  of  Watch-Houses  and 
defraying  other  Necessary  and  Contingent  Charges  for  the  keep- 
ing of  the  Peace  and  Preserving  good  Rule  and  Government 
within  the  said  City,  and  the  purchasing  of  two  fire  Engines 
which  are  greatly  wanted  for  the  better  Securing  the  said  City 
from  the  Danger  &  Accidents  of  fire,  will  amount  to  a  Larger 
sum  of  money  than  the  Yearly  Revenue  of  the  said  Corporation 
can  Supply." 

Therefore  it  was  enacted  that  the  city  be  authorized  to  raise 
money  for  those  purposes  by  taxation.  This  legislation  was 
promptly  followed  up  by  an  ordinance  of  the  Common  Council, 
adopted  May  6,  1731,  levying  the  necessary  tax.  On  the  same 
day,  the  Common  Council  adopted  the  following: 

RESOLVED  that  this  Corporation  do  with  all  Convenient  Speed 
Procure  two  Complete  fire  Engines  with  Suction  and  Materialls 
there  unto  belonging,  for  the  Publick  Service.  That  the  Sizes 

*  The  second  City  Hall,  in  Wall  street  at  the  head  of  Broad  street. 


38  Manhattan's    Primitive    Water   Supply 

thereof  be,  of  the  fourth  and  sixth  sizes  of  Mr.  Newshams  fire 
Engines,  and  that  Mr.  Mayor,  Alderman  Cruger,  Alderman  Rut- 
gers and  Alderman  Roosevelt  or  any  three  of  them  be  a  Com- 
mittee to  Agree  with  some  proper  Merchant  or  Merchants  to 
send  to  London  for  the  sanfe  by  the  first  Conveniency  and  Report 
upon  what  Terms  the  said  Fire  Engines  &c. :  will  be  delivered 
to  this  Corporation. 

On  June  12,  1731,  the  committee  reported  that  Stephen  De 
Lancey  and  John  Moore  were  willing  to  send  to  London  by  the 
ship  Beaver  for  two  engines  of  Mr.  Newsham's  "New  Invention 
of 'the  fourth  and  sixth  sizes,  with  suctions,  Leather  Pipes  and 
Caps  and  Other  Materialls  thereunto  belonging,"  charging  the 
city  120  per  cent  advance  on  the  invoice  price ;  and  the  committee 
was  authorized  to  order  the  engines  accordingly.  The  com- 
mission was  promptly  executed  and  in  a  few  months  the  novel 
machines  were  in  the  city.  On  November  18,  1731,  the  Common 
Council  ordered  that  provisions  be  made  for  keeping  hooks, 
ladders,  buckets  and  the  fire-engines  in  convenient  places,  and  on 
December  1  workmen  were  employed  to  fit  up  a  convenint  room 
in  the  City  Hall  for  the  engines.  A  couple  of  weeks  later  Alder- 
man Johannes  Hardenbroeck  and  Assistant  Alderman  Gerard 
Beekman  were  appointed  a  committee  "to  have  the  Fire  Engines 
Cleaned  and  the  Leathers  Oyled  and  put  into  Boxes  that  the 
same  may  be  fitt  for  Immediate  use." 

The  engines  thus  procured  consisted  each  of  a  wooden 
box  tank  on  wheels,  upon  which  was  mounted  a  suction  pump. 
One  engine  was  operated  with  a  long  handle-bar  or  brake  by 
men  standing  on  a  platform  on  top  of  the  tank.  See  Engineer 
Stoutenburgh's  sketch  of  the  first  "Ingen"  on  page  33.  The  other 
was  operated  with  a  long  crank  handle  protruding  from  the  side 
of  the  machine  by  men  standing  on  the  ground.  Sometimes  the 
water  was  conveyed  to  the  engine  by  the  bucket  brigade  and 
forced  through  a  short  leather  hose  and  nozzle  or  "goose-neck" 
upon  the  fire ;  sometimes  the  engine  was  placed  close  to  a  pump 
so  that  the  water  could  be  pumped  into  the  tank ;  and  sometimes 
a  suction  hose  was  used  to  draw  water  from  a  well. 

The  next  important  step  in  the  evolution  of  the  fire  protec- 
tion system  was  the  establishment  of  a  regular  Fire  Department. 
This  was  done  pursuant  to  a  law  (chapter  670)  enacted  December 
16,  1737.  This  law  provided  that  the  Common  Council  could 


Hand-Pump  Fire-Engine,  Period  of   1732 


"Double-Decker"  Fire-Engine,  Period  of  1840 
39 


40  Manhattan's    Primitive   Water    Supply 

elect  a  sufficient  number  of  "Strong  able  Discreet  honest  and 
sober  men"  not  exceeding  42  in  number,  who  should  be  ready 
at  a  call  by  either  night  or  day  to  use  the  fire-engines  and  other 
tools  and  instruments  for  extinguishing  fires.  It  was  provided 
that  these  persons  "shall  be  called  the  firemen  of  the  City  of  New 
York."  These  were  in  addition  to  the  engine-men  who  were 
regularly  employed.  The  firemen  were  exempt  from  jury  and 
militia  duty  and  from  serving  as  Constables  and  Surveyors  of 
Highways.  The  same  law  provided  that  when  a  fire  broke  out, 
the  Sheriff,  Constables  and  Marshals  should  "immediately  repair 
to  the  place  where  the  said  fire  shall  happen  with  their  Rods, 
Staves  and  other  Badges  of  their  authority,"  to  aid  the  firemen 
and  to  cause  other  people  to  do  the  same,  in  extinguishing  the  fire 
and  protecting  goods  from  theft. 

In  such  humble  ways  the  great  Fire  Department  of  the  City 
of. New  York,  now  the  finest  in  the  world,  began.  It  would 
require  a  volume  in  itself  to  follow  the  growth  of  the  department 
through  the  stage  of  hand-pumping  engines  to  steam,  chemical 
and  automobile  engines  and  the  high  pressure  water  systems 
which  represent  its  highest  development  to-day.  (See  illustra- 
tion on  pages  39  and  45.)  But  enough  has  been  said  with  respect 
to  water  supply  for  domestic  use  and  fire  extinguishing  purposes 
to  indicate  how  poorly  equipped  the  early  city  was  for  the  pre- 
vention of  disease  and  fire  by  water. 


Great  Fires  and  Epidemics 

The  movement  for  a  municipal  water  supply  received  power- 
ful stimulus,  from  time  to  time,  from  great  fires  and  epidemics. 
It  will  conduce  to  a  better  understanding  of  the  events  recorded 
in  succeeding  chapters  to  mention  come  of  these  unfortunate 
occurrences. 

On  September  21,  1776,  six  days  after  the  British  captured 
the  city,  a  fire  broke  out  at  the  foot  of  Whitehall  street  and  spread 
to  Broadway,  burning  up  on  the  east  side  as  far  as  Mr.  Harrison's 
brick  house  and  on  the  west  side  to  St.  Paul's  chapel.  Trinity 
church  and  493  houses  were  destroyed. 

On  August  7,  1778,  a  fire  originating  on  Cruger's  wharf  (in 
the  block  now  bounded  by  Water  and  Front  streets,  Old  slip  and 
Coenties  slip)  consumed  about  50  houses  in  that  vicinity.  This 


Manhattan's    Primitive    Water    Supply          41 

was  during  the  British  occupation  and  the  military  took  exclusive 
control  of  the  situation. 

On  December  18,  1804,  a  fire  broke  out  on  Front  street 
south  of  Wall  street  and  burned  the  whole  block  in  Water  street 
from  Coffee  House  slip  at  the  foot  of  Wall  street  to  the  next 
door  to  Gouverneur's  lane,  including  all  the  buildings  in  Front 
street  to  the  water ;  and  also  some  buildings  on  the  northeast  side 
of  Coffee  House  slip.  The  famous  old  Merchants  Coffee  House, 
built  in  1737,  on  the  southeast  corner  of  Wall  and  Water  streets, 
was  burned. 

On  May  19,  1811,  a  fire  began  near  the  northwest  corner  of 
Duane  and  Chatham  street  (now  Park  row),  and  spread  rapidly 
with  a  wind  from  the  northeast.  Between  80  and  100  buildings 
were  burned.  The  steeple  of  the  old  Brick  church,  in  the  block 
bounded  by  Beekman  street,  Park  row,  Printing  House  square 
and  Nassau  street,  and  cupola  of  the  old  jail  in  City  Hall  park, 
caught  fire,  but  were  not  seriously  damaged. 

The  "Great  Fire"  broke  out  on  the  night  of  December  16, 
1835,  in  the  premises  of  Comstock  &  Andrews,  at  No.  25  Mer- 
chant (now  Beaver)  street  and  burned  over  the  area  bounded 
approximately  by  the  south  side  of  Wall  street  from  William 
street  to  the  East  river,  by  William  and  South  William  street 
to  Coenties  lane;  by  Coenties  lane  and  slip  to  the  river;  and  by 
the  river  from  Coenties  slip  in  Wall  street.  In  this  area,  674 
stores  and  other  buildings  were  destroyed,  causing  a  loss  stated 
at  $17,000,000.  The  Merchants  Exchange  (site  of  the  National 
City  bank)  and  the  old  Dutch  church  in  Garden  street  (now 
Exchange  place)  were  among  the  structures  destroyed. 

A  notable  fire  in  the  early  years  of  the  Croton  system  occurred 
on  July  19,  1845,  when  345  buildings  were  destroyed  and  about 
$5,000,000  loss  was  caused  in  lower  Broadway,  Whitehall  street, 
and  in  Exchange  place  and  other  cross  streets  to  the  southward. 

There  were  epidemics  of  yellow  fever  in  1795,  1798,  1805, 
1819  and  1822,  and  of  cholera  in  1832,  1834,  1849,  and  1855. 
The  epidemic  of  1805  was  particularly  severe.  John  Lambert's 
diary  says  that  in  that  year  26,000  persons  moved  from  the 
interior  of  the  City  to  escape  the  plague.  Those  who  could  not 
go  far  went  to  Greenwich  village  on  the  west  side  of  the  island 
"about  two  or  three  miles  from  town"  where  merchants  and 
bankers  had  other  offices  for  the  transaction  of  business. 


Chapter    IV. 
Early   Pipe-Line   Projects 

Christopher  Colics'  Water-Works 

The  earliest  proposal  to  supply  the  city  with  water  con- 
ducted underground  through  pipes  was  made  by  Christopher 
Colles  just  before  War  of  the  Revolution. 

Colles  was  born  of  Irish  parentage  in  1738  and  came  to 
America  about  1765.*  He  was  certainly  a  man  of  genius  and 
foresight  as  his  water-works  project  sufficiently  attests.  He  was 
an  expert  in  mathematics,  gunnery,  and  drawing,  upon  which 
subjects  the  Common  Council  allowed  him  to  lecture  in  the  Ex- 
change^ and  he  was  a  chemist,  as  indicated  by  the  reference 
hereafter  to  his  manufacture  of  "fig  blue."  He  was  also  a 
pioneer  in  canal  development,  and  as  early  as  1784  petitioned 
the  Legislature  to  connect  the  waters  of  Lake  Ontario  with  the 
Hudson  by  a  canal  through  the  Mohawk  Valley.*  He  was  an 
American  patriot,  suffering  many  privations  during  the  American 
Revolution,  and  his  memory  is  deserving  of  high  respect. f 

On  April  22,  1774,  Colles  proposed  to  erect  a  reservoir  near 
the  Collect  or  Fresh  Water  pond  where  he  had  reason  to  believe 
that  he  could  get  an  adequate  supply  of  fresh  water,  and  to  dis- 
tribute it  through  the  streets  by  means  of  pipes  made  by  boring 
a  hole  longitudinally  through  the  trunks  of  small  trees.  The 
water  was  to  be  pumped  into  his  reservoir  from  a  well  by  a  steam 
engine,  and  to  flow  by  gravity  through  the  pipes. 

When  the  proposition  first  came  to  the  Common  Council  it 
was  so  novel  that  there  was  uncertainty  as  to  its  practicability 
and  advisability.  The  Council  therefore  put  the  subject  off  and 
deliberated  on  it  for  three  months.  When  it  came  up  for  action 
on  July  21,  opinion  was  still  divided;  but  the  majority  were  in 

*  See  sketch  of  Colles  by  John  W.  Francis  in  "The  Knickerbocker  Gallery,"  1855. 
Colles  was  a  man  ahead  of  his  time.  He  conceived  many  ideas  for  which  others  re- 
ceived credit.  His  culture  is  reflected  in  his  living  descendants  who  are  prominently 
connected  with  the  social,  intellectual,  art,  and  civic  life  of  the  city. 

§  Common  Council  minutes  of  August  22,  1787. 

t  Colles  died  in  1821.  Francis  says  he  was  buried  in  the  Hudson  S'treet  (St.  John's) 
Episcopal  cemetery.  The  rector  of  Trinity  parish  informs  the  writer  that  he  was  not 
interred  there,  and  a  descendant  of  Colles  says  that  his  grave  is  in  St.  Paul's  church- 
yard. 


Early  Pipe-Line   Projects  43 

favor  of  the  experiment  and  voted  8  to  2  to  undertake  it.  At 
the  same  time,  they  voted  to  issue  notes  to  the  amount  of  £2,600 
for  the  undertaking.  Subsequent  issues  brought  the  amount  up 
up  to  £9,100. 

These  notes  were  about  the  size  of  the  "shin-plasters"  of 
the  Civil  \Yar  period,  being  about  21/3  by  4  inches  in  size.  A 
specimen  of  which  we  have  a  copy  before  us  bore  on  its  face  the 
following  inscription. 

NEW  YORK  WATER  WORKS 

(No.  1911.) 
This  Note  shall  entitle  the  Bearer  to  the  sum  of 

Four  Shillings 

current  money  of  the  Colony  of  New  York,  pay- 
able on  Demand,  by  the  Mayor,  Aldermen  and 
Commonalty  of  the  City  of  New  York,  at  the 
office  of  Chamberlain  of  the  said  City,  pursuant 
to  a  Vote  of  the  said  Mayor,  Aldermen  and  Com- 
monalty, of  this  Date.  Dated  the  Sixth  Day  of 
January,  in  the  Year  of  our  Lord  One  Thousand 
Seven  Hundred  and  Seventy  Six. 
By  order  of  the  Corporation. 

N.  Bayard. 
J.  H.  Cruger. 

On  the  back  of  the  note  was  the  picture  of  a  pumping  engine 
and  two  fountains. 

It  cannot  be  said  that  the  Common  Council  proceeded  with 
rash  haste  in  this  enterprise,  for  when  Augustus  and  Frederick 
Van  Cortlandt  offered  to  sell  to  the  city  a  site  for  the  reservoir 
on  the  east  side  of  Great  George  street,  now  Broadway,  between 
Pearl  and  White  streets,  at  the  rate  of  £600  an  acre,  they  per- 
sonally went  to  the  new  well  sunk  on  the  property  and  tasted 
the  water.  One  can  almost  imagine  these  dignified  gentlemen 
going  to  that  then  remote  spot  on  the  west  side  of  the  Fresh 
Water  pond,  adjacent  to  the  marshy  Lispenard  meadows  abound- 
ing in  bullfrogs  and  game  birds  in  season,  sipping  the  water 
from  the  new  well  like  connoisseurs  of  some  rare  vintage,  smack- 
ing their  lips,  looking  at  each  other  wisely,  and  finally  pronounc- 
ing a  favorable  verdict.  Concluding  "the  same  to  be  of  very 
good  quality,"  they  accepted  the  Van  Cortlandts'  offer  and  told 
Mr.  Colles  to  go  ahead  with  his  work. 

On  August  29,  1774,  the  Common  Council  appointed  a  com- 
mittee of  eight  members  to  superintend  the  construction  of  the 


44  Early  Pipe-Line  Projects 

works,  and  in  November  they  contracted  with  Isaac  Mann  and 
Isaac  Mann,  Jr.,  of  Stillwater,  now  in  Saratoga  county,  to  furnish 
60,000  linear  feet  of  pitch  or  yellow  pine  timber  for  the  making 
of  the  pipes.  The  original  contract,  which  is  on  file  in  the  docu- 
ment room  of  the  City  Clerk  in  the  Municipal  building,  provided 
that  the  logs  should  be  from  14  to  20  feet  long  and  that  one- 
fourth -of  them  should  be  12  inches  in  diameter  at  the  small  end 
of  the  log  "exclusive  of  the  sap  thereof"  and  three-fourths  9 
inches  in  diameter  at  the  small  end,  and  all  should  be  "straight 
and  free  from  shakes  and  large  knots."  The  contractors  were 
to  deliver  one-third  of  the  timber  on  July  1,  1775,  one-third  on 
August  1,  and  one-third  on  October  1,  and  were  to  receive  there- 
for £1,250. 

While  waiting  for  the  timber  for  the  pipes,  Mr.  Colles  went 
ahead  diligently  with  the  construction  of  his  well,  reservoir  and 
pumphouse  on  a  slight  eminence  on  the  east  side  of  Broadway 
between  Pearl  and  White  streets.  The  reservoir  had  a  capacity 
of  20,000  hogsheads.  The  well  was  30  feet  in  diameter.  And 
the  engine  pumped  200  gallons  of  water  52  feet  high  per  minute. 
After  the  war,  Josiah  Hornblower  was  paid  £12  for  "attend- 
ing and  making  report  of  the  fire-engine  for  the  water  works 
about  to  be  erected  in  1775."  The  pump-house  was  a  substan- 
tial structure,  roofed  with  pantiles  (curved  tiles,  laid  alternately 
with  the  convex  and  concave  sides  upward)  and  the  bills  for 
iron-work,  braziers  work,  rope,  etc.,  which  the  city  had  to  pay 
after  the  war,  indicate  that  all  the  works  were  built  in  a  durable 
manner. 

But  while  the  waterworks  were  being  built,  the  city  was 
thrown  into  a  turmoil  of  excitement  by  the  news  from  Lexington 
and  Bunker  Hill.  The  work  of  construction,  however,  continued 
into  1776,  but  with  the  critical  events  of  that  year,  the  project  was 
completely  interrupted,  never  to  be  renewed.  Mr.  Colles  with 
his  family  fled  from  the  City  and  endured  great  privations,  rather 
than  submit  to  the  British  rule ;  and  during  the  period  of  the 
war  his  water-works  became  totally  ruined. 

After  the  war,  he  returned  to  New  York  and  soon  after  the 
Common  Council  assembled  he  presented  a  petition  for  the  pay- 
ment of  moneys  due  him.  His  original  memorial,  dated  October 
27,  1784,  is  in  the  records  room  of  the  City  Clerk  in  the  Municipal 
building.  It  is  a  document  of  peculiar  historical  interest: 


Horse-Drawn  Steam  Fire-Engine,  Period  of  1865 


Self-Propelled  Steam  Fire-Engine,  Period  of  1917 

45 


46  Early  Pipe-Line  Projects 

To  the  Honorable  the  Mayor,  Aldermen  and  Common  Coun- 
cil of  the  City  of  New  York. 

The  Humble  Memorial  of  Christopher  Colles  of  said  City 
Engineer  Sheweth. 

That  your  Memoralist  in  the  year  1774  presented  a  proposal 
to  this  honorable  corporation  for  erecting  works  for  supplying  this 
city  with  water  for  the  sum  of  eighteen  thousand  pounds. 

That  this  honorable  board  after  sufficient  enquiry  concern- 
ing the  practicability  of  the  design  Resolved  to  agree  with  the 
said  proposal  and  directed  your  memorialist  to  proceed  in  the 
execution  of  the  work. 

That  your  memorialist  did  accordingly  proceed  in  the  exe- 
cution of  the  work  and  erected  a  reservoir  capable  of  containing 
twenty  thousand  hogsheads  of  water;  dug,  walled,  covered  and 
completely  finished  a  well  of  thirty  feet  diameter  at  the  inside, 
from  which  he  pumped  by  means  of  a  steam  engine  which  he 
also  erected,  two  hundred  gallons  of  water,  fifty-two  feet  high 
perpendicular  per  minute,  into  the  said  reservoir. 

That  previous  to  the  said  resolve  of  the  corporation  your 
memorialist  furnished  them-  with  an  estimate  of  the  expense  of 
the  different  parts  of  the  work,  agreeable  to  which  the  part 
executed  amounted  to  the  sum  of  three  thousand  six  hundred 
pounds. 

That  the  several  sums  advanced  for  the  prosecution  of  the 
work  amounted  to  three  thousand  pounds,  consequently,  that 
there  remains  a  balance  of  six  hundred  pounds,  one  hundred  and 
fifty  pounds  of  which  is  due  to  different  artificers  for  work  and 
the  remaining  four  hundred  and  fifty  pounds  is  due  to  saul 
Colles. 

That  your  Memorialist  in  common  with  other  citizens, 
friends  of  society  and  the  interest  of  mankind,  suffered  the  most 
poignant  afflictions  during  the  late  war,  and  with  the  utmost 
difficulty  procured  the  common  necessaries  for  his  family;  and 
being  now  returned  to  the  city,  where  he  hopes  to  devote  the 
remainder  of  his  days  in  promoting  the  welfare  of  the  city  and 
country,  he  prays  the  corporation  to  use  their  endeavors  to  pay 
him  the  balance  above  referred  to,  by  which  he  may  be  enabled 
to  support  his  numerous  family  in  credit,  and  in  some  degree  of 
comfort. 

May  it  therefore  please  your  honors,  to  take  the  premises 
into  consideration,  and  grant  him  that  justice  and  assistance, 
which  to  your  judgment  shall  seem  meet. 

CHRISTOPHER  COLLES. 

The  Common  Council  did  not  at  first  act  on  this  petition 
and  on  July  20,  1785,  Mr.  Colles  begged  the  Board  again  to  give 
him  relief  declaring  that  "his  distresses  are  of  such  a  poignant 
nature  as  to  compel  him  to  request  some  (though  small)  yet 


Early  Pipe-Line  Projects  47 

present  assistance."*  In  August,  1785,  the  Council  granted  him 
£100  on  account. 

On  November  23,  1785,  he  appealed  to  the  Council  for  £50 
more  on  account.  This  petition  gives  an  interesting  indication 
of  Mr.  Colics'  abilities.  He  said  that  he  was  desirous  of  apply- 
ing part  of  the  money  "so  as  to  enable  him  to  support  his  family 
with  credit.''  and  to  that  end  "he  has  erected  a  horse-mill  and 
other  works  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  on  in  this  City  the  Manu- 
facture of  Fig  Blue,  which  manufacture  he  proposes  to  have  car- 
ried on  by  his  eldest  son  in  case  he  shall  be  engaged  in  the  prose- 
cution of  the  navigation  of  the  Mohawk  River."  He  said  that  he 
had  already  made  and  sold  to  grocers  and  others  this  product 
"which  upon  trial  is  proved  to  be  fully  equal  in  quality  to  any 
imported,  although  he  can  afford  to  sell  it  at  less  price." 

The  foregoing  petition  was  granted  and  he  was  given  the 
£50  asked  for.  Finally,  on  January  16,  1788,  he  consented  to 
accept  £50  in  settlement  of  all  demands.  Meantime,  the  cor- 
poration had  allowed  him  to  use  the  room  at  the  Exchange  to 
.give  lectures  on  gunnery,  drawing,  mathematics,  etc.,  which  indi- 
cate that  the  delay  and  apparent  penuriousness  in  paying  him 
were  not  due  to  any  underestimate  of  his  character  and  abilities. 

Projects  of  Ogden,  Livingston,  Rumsey  and  Others 

\Yhile  the  Common  Council  was  still  paying  bills  for  the 
-dead  enterprise  of  Mr.  Colles,  it  received  successive  propositions 
of  a  similar  nature  from  other  sources. 

The  first,  dated  March  24,  1785,  came  from  Samuel  Ogden. 
The  original  document,  which  is  in  the  document  room  of  the 
City  Clerk  in  the  Municipal  building,  reads  as  follows : 

"To  the  Mayor.  Aldermen  and  Commonalty  of  the  City  and 
County  of  Xew  York  in  Common  Council. 

The  Memorial  of  Samuel  Ogden  of  said  City 
Sheweth : 

That  as  the  late  war  hath  totally  ruined  the  fire  engine  and 
water  works  which  were  erected  for  the  purpose  of  supplying  this 
city  with  water,  your  Memorialist  begs  leave  to  propose  to  the 
consideration  of  the  corporation  the  following  proposals.  That 
he  will  at  the  expense  of  himself  and  associates  erect  and  estab- 
lish at  or  near  the  place  where  the  former  one  was  builtt  which 

*  Original  in  records  office  of  city  clerk.   Municipal  building. 
t  The  word  "  works  "  evidently  omitted. 


48  Early  Pipe-Line  Projects 

shall  supply  the  reservoir  with  144,000  gallons  of  water  per  day, 
and  that  he  will  in  pipes  lead  and  conduct  the  same  water  through 
the  streets  of  this  city,  in  such  manner  as  shall  be  hereafter 
explained  provided  such  compensation  and  reward  be  secured  to 
your  Memorialist  and  his  associates  as  shall  hereafter  be  agreed 
upon.  On  the  subject  of  which  your  Memorialist  begs  a  confer- 
ence at  such  time  and  place  as  you  may  think  proper  to  appoint. 

SAML.  OGDEN. 

New  York,  March  24,  1785. 

This  petition  came  before  the  Common  Council  April  5,  and 
Aldermen  John  Broome  and  William  Neilson  and  Assistant 
Alderman  Daniel  Phoenix  were  appointed  a  committee  to  confer 
with  him. 

Before  any  conclusion  was  reached  on  this  proposition,  and 
on  January  30,  1786,  Chancellor  Robert  R.  Livingston,  who  later 
encouraged  Robert  Fulton  in  his  steamboat  invention  and  who 
had  a  considerable  interest  in  mechanical  engineering  himself, 
made  a  proposition  to  the  Board  to  contract  to  convey  fresh  water 
to  the  city.  Aldermen  John  Broome  and  Jeremiah  Wool  and 
Assistant  Aldermen  William  Malcom,  George  Janeway  and  Abra- 
ham Van  Gelder  were  appointed  a  committee  to  confer  with  him. 

On  February  6,  1786,  both  committees  made  reports,  but 
consideration  was  postponed,  and  on  February  15,  Chancellor 
Livingston  and  John  Lawrence,  who  was  associated  with  him 
in  his  proposal,  appeared  before  the  Board  in  support  of  their 
proposals.  On  the  latter  date,  the  Board  decided  to  return  the 
proposals  previously  received  and  to  advertise  for  new  one's,  to 
be  received  prior  to  January  1,  1787.  The  latter  date  was  sub- 
sequently changed  to  April  20,  1786. 

On  April  19,  1786,  the  day  before  the  date  set  for  opening 
proposals  for  the  water-works,  a  strong  sentiment  was  shown  at 
the  Common  Council  meeting  against  letting  out  the  water-supply 
to  private  enterprise.  The  Clerk  reported  that  he  had  received 
three  sealed  packets  containing  proposals  to  erect  the  water-works ; 
but  the  Board  ordered  that  they  remain  unopened  until  further 
orders.  Meanwhile,  the  aldermen  and  assistants  were  requested, 
"to  set  on  foot  in  their  respective  wards  representations  to  this 
Board  in  writing  and  subscribed  by  the  citizens  in  order  more 
fully  to  ascertain  their  sense  whether  the  corporation  ought  to 
grant  to  individuals  the  privilege  of  supplying  the  city  with  water 
or  whether  the  same  ought  to  be  undertaken  by  the  corporation 


Early  Pipe-Line  Projects  49 

and  that  the  moneys  necessary  for  the  purpose  should  be  raised 
by  a  tax  on  the  citizens." 

Nothing,  however,  came  of  these  projects  and  the  matter 
dragged  along  almost  two  years  without  any  further  progress  or 
further  movement  on  the  part  of  the  citizens.  On  February  27, 
1788,  a  large  number  of  inhabitants  represented  to  the  Common 
Council  "the  inconveniencies  which  arise  from  the  present  mode 
of  supplying  the  city  with  water"  and  prayed  the  Board  "to 
adopt  such  measures  for  supplying  it  with  water  by  means  of 
pipes  agreeable  to  a  plan  or  proposal  set  on  foot  by  Christopher 
Colles  or  such  other  plan  as  to  the  Board  shall  appear  most 
expedient."  But  this  petition  was  as  ineffectual  as  its  prede- 
cessors. The  fact  was,  that  the  city  was  passing  through  a  period 
of  reconstruction  after  the  war.  The  minds  of  the  members 
of  the  Common  Council  and  the  financial  resources  of  the  cor- 
poration were  engaged  to  the  limit  with  other  municipal  improve- 
ments— the  laying  out  of  streets,  the  laying  of  pavements,  the 
building  of  sewers,  the  remission  or  settlement  of  rents,  and  the 
straightening  out  of  the  numerous  affairs  tangled  by  the  inter- 
ruption caused  by  the  war.  It  is  not  surprising  therefore  that 
the  water-\vorks  improvement  was  held  in  abeyance. 

On  January  30,  1789,  the  Common  Council  received  a  letter 
from  Benjamin  \Yynkoop,  Levi  Hollingsworth  and  G.  Turner, 
the  Corresponding  Committee  of  the  Rumsian  society  of  Phila- 
delphia, stating  that  Mr.  Rumsey  had  invented  an  engine  superior 
to  any  other  for  supplying  towns  with  water ;  that  he  had  applied 
to  the  Legislature  for  a  patent;  and  when  it  was  granted,  the 
society  would  come  forward  with  proposals  for  supplying  Xew 
York  with  water  by  contract.  The  Board  received  the  sugges- 
tion with  every  encouragement,  but  declared  that  it  had  no  moneys 
which  it  could  use  for  the  purpose  at  that  time. 

During  the  next  nine  years,  the  subject  was  taken  up  fitfully 
by  the  city  government  and  by  individuals,  with  no  better  results. 
In  February,  1792,  Zebrina  Curtis  and  others  made  proposals 
which  were  referred  to  the  Street  committee  and  were  heard  of 
no  more.  In  March,  1795,  Amos  Porter  made  a  like  proposal. 
This  year,  Samuel  Crane  submitted  a  specific  plan  to  lead  water 
from  the  Tea  Water  Pump  through  Roosevelt  street;  and  Ben- 
jamin Taylor  advanced  still  a  different  project.  In  February, 
1796,  the  Common  Council  directed  a  committee  to  advertise  for 


50  Early   Pipe-Line  Projects 

proposals;  and  in  December,  Dr.  Joseph  Brown  and  associates 
offered  to  supply  the  city  with  water  through  pipes.     Again  in 

1797,  sealed  proposals  were  advertised  for,  and  seven  or  eight 
applications  were  received.     One  of  them  was  from  Christopher 
Colles.    They  were  referred  to  a  committee  and  lost  sight  of.    In 

1798,  R.  J.  Roosevelt  and  Judge  Cooper  of  Otsego  made  new 
applications ;  and  so  did  Dr.  Joseph  Brown. 

The  originality  of  Dr.  Brown's  project  in  1798  lay  in  the  fact 
that  he  proposed  to  go  to  the  Bronx  river  for  the  water,  and  this 
was  apparently  the  first  suggestion  of  going  off  the  Island  of 
Manhattan  for  this  purpose.  On  December  17,  1798,  the  com- 
mittee of  the  Common  Council,  which  was  appointed  to  investi- 
gate this  suggestion  reported  in  its  favor,  and  made  three  specific 
recommendations. 

First,  that  William  Weston,  who  had  been  the  engineer  for 
the  canal  companies  in  this  state  and  was  a  man  of  known  abili- 
ties, be  requested  to  examine  the  river,  the  grounds  for  the 
aqueduct,  etc.,  and  report  his  opinion; 

Second,  that  in  view  of  the  importance  of  the  matter  to  the 
comfort  and  health  of  the  inhabitants,  and  the  fact  that  private 
parties  would  not  undertake  the  enterprise  except  with  the  pros- 
pect of  gain  at  the  expense  of  the  citizens,  the  water-works  should 
be  under  the  control  of  the  corporation  as  the  immediate  repre- 
sentative of  the  citizens  in  general ;  and 

Third,  that  the  Legislature  be  requested  to  pass  a  law  giving 
the  city  power  to  undertake  the  work  and  to  raise  the  necessary 
funds  by  taxation. 

Mr.  Weston  was  consulted,  as  above  suggested,  and  on 
March  14,  1799,  he  made  a  report  which  is  of  great  civic  and  his- 
torical interest,  recommending  the  Bronx  river  as  a  source.  His 
report  also  gives  an  indication  of  the  state  of  hydraulic  science 
nearly  a  century  and  a  quarter  ago.  Its  full  text  is  to  be  found 
in  Valentine's  Corporation  Manual  for  1860,  at  pages  580-588. 

The  Manhattan  Company's  Water-Works 

The  first  successful  pipe-line  system  of  water-works  was 
that  of  the  Manhattan  company,  which  was  incorporated  in  1799. 
Upon  the  assembling  of  the  Legislature  that  year,  Aaron  Burr 
and  several  other  men  applied  for  a  charter  for  the  purpose  of 
•'supplying  the  City  of  New  York  with  pure  and  wholesome 


c 

(0 

a 

j 


52  Early  Pipe-Line   Projects 

water,"  and  on  April  2,  1799,  the  bill  was  passed,  incorporating 
the  Manhattan  company.  The  capital  of  the  corporation  was 
§2,000,000 — a  great  sum  for  those  clays — and  as  the  cost  of  the 
proposed  water  system  could  not  accurately  be  foreseen,  there 
was  a  clause  in  the  charter  permitting  the  company  to  employ  its 
surplus  capital  in  financial  transactions  not  inconsistent  with  the 
constitutions  and  laws  of  the  state  of  New  York  and  the  United 
States. 

It  has  been  a  common  tradition  that  the  banking  privilege 
contained  in  this  charter,  apparently  as  a  subordinate  feature, 
was  really  the  main  object  of  the  projectors,  and  was  thus  intro- 
duced covertly  to  avoid  the  opposition  which  Burr  was  certain  to 
encounter  from  Alexander  Hamilton  and  the  Federal  party. 
Hamilton  had  organized  the  first  banking  organization  in  New 
York  when  in  1784  he  formed  the  Bank  of  New  York  which 
was  chartered  in  1792.  For  fifteen  years,  Hamilton's  bank  and 
the  Branch  bank  of  the  United  States  were  the  only  banks  doing 
business  in  the  City  of  New  York.  This  monopoly  was  of  value 
to  the  political  party  which  was  then  in  control  and  with  which 
Hamilton  was  allied,  and  consequently  Burr's  effort  to  obtain  a 
charter,  which  was  quickly  perceived  to  contain  a  clause  which 
permitted  banking,  was  earnestly  opposed.  The  opposition  was 
unsuccessful,  however,  and  the  Manhattan  company  secured  its 
charter. 

Whether  the  tradition  before  mentioned  as  to  the  leading 
motives  of  Burr  and  associates  was  well  founded  or  not,  the  fact 
remains  that  the  company  did  go  ahead  with  the  water-works 
undertaking,  built  reservoirs,  and  laid  an  extensive  system  of 
distributing  pipes  in  the  then  small  city.  These  pipes  were  hol- 
low logs,  many  of  which  have  been  dug  up  in  recent  years  in 
the  streets  south  of  Chambers  street.  The  first  meeting  of  the 
directors  -was  held  at  the  house  of  Edward  Barden,  inn-keeper,* 
on  April  11,  1799,  when  there  were  present  Aaron  Burr,  John 
Broome  who  was  long  an  Alderman,  John  B.  Church  who  fought 
a  duel  with  Burr  on  September  2,  1799,  John  B.  Coles,  Richard 
Harrison  who  was  Recorder  of  the  city,  William  Laight,  Brock- 
hoist  Livingston,  Daniel  Ludlow,  .Sanuiel  Osgood,  Pascal  N. 
Smith,  John  Stevens  and  John  Watts.  The  only  absentee  was 
William  Edgar.  Mr.  Ludlow  was  elected  President. 

*  The   Merchants    Coffee    House. 


Early    Pipe-Line   Projects  53 

At  the  meeting  of  April  11,  1799,  a  resolution  was  adopted 
declaring  that  the  principal  object  of  the  corporation  was  to 
obtain  a  supply  of  pure  and  wholesome  water  for  the  city  and  a 
committee  was  appointed  to  report  means  for  obtaining  such  a 
supply.  So  rapidly  did  the  plans  mature  that  on  May  <>  following 
the  water  committee  was  empowered  "to  contract  for  as  many 
pine  logs  as  they  may  think  necessary  for  pipes  and  also  for 
boring  the  same." 

Meanwhile,  if  the  water  supply  was  the  chief  object  of  the 
company,  the  banking  privilege  was  not  neglected,  and  on  April 
17,  1799,  a  committee  was  appointed  "to  consider  the  most  proper 
means  of  employing  the  capital  of  the  company."  On  June  3 
the  committee  reported  in  favor  of  opening  an  office  of  discount 
and  deposit  and  a  house  was  bought  on  the  site  of  the  present 
Xo.  40  \Yall  street  (then  having  a  different  number)  in  which, 
on  September  1,  1799,  the  bank  of  the  company  began  business. 
This  venerable  corporation  is  still  doing  business  at  Xo.  40  \Yall 
street  under  the  style  of  the  Bank  of  the  Manhattan  company. 

In  prosecuting  the  water-works  business,  the  company  sank 
a  number  of  wells,  built  tanks  and  reservoirs,  and  extended  its 
distributing  system  generally  throughtout  the  city  below  Cham- 
bers street.  In  1836  the  system  was  extended  northward  along 
Broadway  as  far  as  Bleecker  street,  when  the  company  had  about 
25  miles  of  mains  and  supplied  about  2,000  houses.  The  maxi- 
mum amount  of  water  supplied  by  this  company  was  about 
700,000  gallons  a  day.  The  company  continued  to  operate  its 
system  until  about  the  time  the  Croton  system  came  into  use 
in  1842. 

One  conspicuous  landmark  of  the  old  water- works  was  the 
Chambers  street  reservoir.  It  had  sloping  walls,  similar  in  style 
to  the  Croton  reservoir  which  later  stood  on  the  site  of  the  present 
public  library  on  the  west  side  of  Fifth  avenue  between  40th  and 
42d  streets.  It  stood  on  the  north  side  of  Chambers  street  be- 
tween Broadway  and  Center  street.  Its  facade  was  unrelieved 
except  by  an  entablature  which  was  supported  by  four  Doric 
columns  and  upon  which  was  a  figure  of  "Oceanus,  one  of  the 
sea-god-,  sitting  in  a  reclining  posture  on  a  rising  ground  pour- 
ing water  from  an  urn  which  forms  a  river  and  terminates  in  a 
lake."  This  was  the  physical' embodiment  of  the  device  of  the 
corporation  seal  of  the  company  adopted  May  8,  1799. 


54  Early  Pipe-Line  Projects 

Another  landmark  of  the  company  was  the  tank  which  stood 
on  the  northwest  corner  of  Reade  and  Center  streets  until  July, 
1914,  when  it  was  demolished.  This  tank,  which  was  erected 
over  one  of  the  earliest  wells  of  the  company,  was  circular  in 
form  and  measured  41  feet  in  diameter.  It  had  a  massive 
stone  foundation  rising  23  feet  above  the  original  ground  level, 
which  was  surmounted  by  a  circular  tank,  41  feet  in  diameter  and 
15  feet  high,  the  sides  and  bottom  of  which  were  composed  of 
iron  plates  bolted  together.  Later  the  reservoir  was  enclosed  in 
a  three  story  building.  Water  was  originally  pumped  into  the 
tank  by  a  steam  engine.  When  the  tank  was  taken  down  in  July 
1914,  the  black  sediment  on  the  bottom  of  the  reservoir — the 
accumulation  of  dust  which  had  slowly  settled  in  the  tank  not- 
withstanding it  was  surrounded  and  covered  by  the  building, — 
was  about  one  foot  thick.  Among  the  traditions  which  grew  up 
around  the  old  reservoir  was  one  to  the  effect  that  the  Manhattan 
company  was  obliged  to  pump  water  into  the  tank  every  day  in 
order  to  keep  alive  its  charter.  As  the  reservoir  is  now  gone 
and  the  company  continues  to  do  business,  the  tradition  appears 
to  be  effectually  set  at  rest.  When  the  building  and  tank  were 
torn  down  in  1914  to  make  room  for  a  modern  building  and  the 
old  reservoir  was  exposed  to  view,  all  sorts  of  strange  tales  were 
circulated  about  it.  One  story  alleged  that  it  had  been  a  fort 
in  the  war  of  the  Revolution  and  another  that  it  had  been  an 
ancient  prison,  neither  of  which  legends  was  true. 

The  wooden  pipes  of  the  old  Manhattan  company  are  fre- 
quently met  with  in  excavating  for  modern  water-mains,  gas- 
mains,  sewers,  electric  conduits  and  subways;  and  sections  of 
them  are  preserved  at  the  New  York  Historical  society  building 
and  elsewhere  as  great  curiosities.  One  of  the  latest  sections  to 
be  exhumed  to  the  knowledge  of  the  present  writer  was  located 
at  Pearl  street  and  Coenties  slip  and  was  removed  by  the  con- 
tractors in  June,  1917. 

The  Municipal  Water  Supply  of  1829. 

During  the  first  quarter  of  the  nineteenth  century,  while  the 
Manhattan  company  was  supplying  the  city,  there  was  repeated 
agitation  of  the  subject  of  a  larger  water-supply,  some  people 
proposing  private  projects  and  some  advocating  a  municipal  water 
system.  In  1804,  under  the  mayoralty  of  De  Witt  Clinton,  a 


Early   Pipe-Line  Projects  55 

committee  was  appointed  to  report  upon  the  practicability  of 
supplying  the  city  with  pure  and  wholesome  water,  and  especially 
to  confer  with  the  Manhattan  company  as  to  the  terms  upon 
which  it  would  cede  to  the  corporation  its  works  and  privileges 
of  supplying  water ;  but  nothing  seems  to  have  come  of  it,  and 
things  ran  along  until  March,  1816,  when  it  was  voted  to  ask  the 
Legislature  to  give  the  city  power  to  establish  a  municipal  water- 
supply.  Still,  nothing  was  accomplished.  In  1819  Robert 
Macomb  memorialized  the  Common  Council,  proposing  to  bring 
water  from  Rye  pond  to  a  reservoir  at  Harlem  river,  and  dis- 
tribute it  to  the  city.  A  favorable  report  was  made  on  this  sug- 
gestion in  1820,  but  it  was  not  carried  out.  In  1821  and  1822, 
when  Stephen  Allen  was  Mayor,  the  subject  was  renewed  and 
in  the  latter  year  Canvas  White  was  employed  to  survey  the 
whole  line  from  the  city  to  the  main  source  of  the  Bronx  river. 
While  he  was  at  work,  in  1823,  a  project  for  bringing  water 
from  the  Housatonic  river  to  New  York  by  canal  was  advanced. 
In  1824,  Canvas  White  reported  in  favor  of  bringing  wrater 
from  the  Bronx  river,  taking  it  at  the  W7estchester  cotton  factory 
pond,  but  this  plan  was  abandoned.  In  1825  the  Xew  York 
\Vater-Works  company  was  incorporated  by  the  Legislature,  but 
its  charter  proved  unworkable  and  it  was  surrendered  in  1827. 
In  the  latter  year  the  Xew  York  Well  company  was  incorporated 
and  tried  to  get  water  from  artesian  wells,  but  the  plan  proved 
to  be  impracticable. 

At  length,  in  1829,  the  city  adopted  the  recommendation  of 
Alderman  Samuel  Stevens  to  establish  a  reservoir  in  the  small 
block  between  Broadway,  Fourth  avenue,  13th  and  14th  streets, 
for  the  distribution  of  water  for  fire  extinguishing  purposes.  The 
reservoir  was  an  elevated  tank,  with  a  capacity  of  233,000  gal- 
lons, its  surface  being  104  feet  above  sea-level.  Its  water  came 
from  a  well  at  Jefferson  Market,  at  the  intersection  of  Sixth  and 
Greenwich  avenues,  which  was  supplied  by  conduit  galleries  con- 
verging from  different  directions  at  the  well.  In  1832,  a  12- 
horse-power  steam  engine  was  installed  at  the  well  to  force  water 
through  a  main  pipe  to  the  reservoir.*  The  water  was  not  good 
enough  for  domestic  use;  but  the  committee  urged  the  laying  of 
iron  pipes,  instead  of  the  old-fashioned  wooden  pipes,  arguing 
that  when  the  long  desired  object  of  supplying  the  city  with  water 
for  domestic  purposes  should  be  carried  into  effect,  these  same 

Haswell's  Reminiscences,  pp.   2<">+. 


56  Early  Pipe-Line   Projects 

pipes  would  serve.  A  reluctant  assent  to  these  recommendations 
was  wrung  from  the  Common  Council,  and  a  committee  was 
empowered  to  provide  the  necessary  site  for  a  reservoir,  and  to 
contract  for  iron  pipes.  This  was  the  feeble  and  economical 
beginning  of  the  city-owned  water  supply. 

The  provision  of  1829  was  confessedly  inadequate,  and 
during  the  next  seven  years  events  rapidly  moved  toward  the 
'Croton  system.  In  1830,  projects  for  bringing  water  from  the 
Croton  river,  Rye  pond,  and  from  the  Passaic  river,  N.  J.,  were 
advanced,  with  the  strongest  drift  toward  the  Croton. 

In  December,  1832,  De  Witt  Clinton  arrived  at  the  conclu- 
sion that  an  adequate  supply  could  only  be  obtained  from  the 
Croton.  He  advocated  an  open  aqueduct  or  canal  for  that 
purpose. 

A  curious  proposition  was  made  in  1834  by  Bradford  Sey- 
mour of  Utica  who  proposed  to  dam  the  Hudson  river  opposite 
Amos  street  and  generate  30,000  horse-power  of  which  3,000 
horse-power  was  to  be  used  for  pumping  water  to  a  reservoir 
on  Manhattan  island,  and  27,000  horse-power  for  industrial 
purposes. 

Surveys  having  shown  a  closed  masonry  aqueduct  from 
the  Croton  river  to  be  practicable,  the  people  decided  in  1835 
by  a  popular  vote  of  17,330  to  5,963  to  issue  $2,500,000  of  "water 
stock"  and  go  ahead  with  the  work. 

In  July,  1836,  the  Common  Council  ordered  pipe  to  be  laid 
preparatory  to  the  introduction  of  the  water,  and  in  October 
John  B.  Jervis  was  appointed  Chief  Engineer.  The  work  of 
construction  began  early  in  1837. 


Laying  90-inch  Pipe  of  Croton  Aqueduct  on  High  Bridge  in  1861 


High  Bridge  in  1917 

57 


Chapter  V 
The  Croton  Aqueduct 

The  Old  Croton  Dam 

The  work  on  the  old  Croton  aqueduct  which  was  commenced: 
in  1837  began  at  a  point  on  the  Croton  river  about  six  miles- 
from  its  mouth  with  the  construction  of  a  dam.  This  dam  was- 
designed  to  raise  the  water  40  feet  above  the  level  of  the  head  of 
the  aqueduct  and  166  feet  above  mean  tide. 

The  rock  formation  at  the  site  is  Fordham  gneiss,  and  the 
rock  bottom  of  the  river  was  so  deep  as  to  give  the  engineers 
trouble  at  the  very  start.  Even  after  shifting  their  plans,  it  was 
necessary  to  make  an  artificial  foundation  for  part  of  the  dam 
where  they  could  not  build  it  on  the  living  rock.  The  southern 
abutment  was  of  natural  rock,  and  the  aqueduct  being  on  the 
southern  side  of  the  river,  the  water  was  conducted  to  its  head 
by  a  tunnel  out  180  feet  through  the  rock.  The  gateway  was  also 
located  in  the  solid  rock,  unexposed  to  the  floods  of  the  river. 
A  waste  culvert  was  built  in  the  north  abutment,  with  suitable 
gates  for  drawing  down  the  reservoir  for  repairs  and  to  discharge 
the  river  at  ordinary  times  during  the  course  of  construction. 
From  this  abutment  the  old  channel  of  the  river  was  filled  by 
an  embankment,  with  a  heavy  protection  wall  on  the  lower  side 
which  was  rais.ed  fifteen  feet  above  the  waste  weir  of  the  dam  and 
designed  to  be  thirty  feet  wide  on  top.  While  this  was  in  course 
of  construction  in  January,  1841,  the  water  rose  until,  when  near 
the  surface,  it  began  to  pass  between  the  frozen  and  unfrozen 
earth  about  20  inches  from  the  top.  Then,  after  the  breach  was 
made,  heavy  masses  of  ice  came  down  from  the  reservoir  and 
broke  down  the  unfinished  protection  wall,  with  the  result  that 
the  whole  embankment  was.  carried  away.  The  masonry  of  the 
dam  and  abutment,  however,  suffered  little  damage.  It  was 
then  decided  to  fill  the  breach  thus  made,  about  200  feet  long,  by 
a  structure  of  hydraulic  stone  masonry,  adapting  180  feet  of  it 
for  a  waste  weir.  This  was  effected  with  great  difficulty  in  those 
days,  it  being  necessary  to  lay  an  artificial  foundation.  The 
greatest  height  of  the  dam  was  40  feet  above  low  water  level  and: 


The    Croton  Aqueduct  59 

55  feet  above  the  bed  of  the  river.  The  masonry  at  low  water 
line  of  the  river  was  61  feet  long. 

Three  hundred  feet  below  the  main  dam  a  second  dam,  9 
feet  high,  was  built  for  the  purpose  of  setting  the  water  back 
over  the  apron  of  the  main  dam  to  form  a  pool  of  water  which 
should  receive  the  impact  of  the  water  passing  over  the  main 
dam. 

The  old  Croton  dam  impounded  the  water  of  the  river  in  a 

reservoir  five  miles  long  and  covering  about  400  acres. 

» 

High  Bridge  Over  Harlem   River 

From  the  Croton  dam  a  masonry  aqueduct  was  built  through 
the  country  and  the  villages  of  Sing  Sing,  Tarry-town,  Dobbs 
Ferry,  Hastings  and  Yonkers  to  the  Harlem  river  opposite  174th 
street.  Manhattan,  a  distance  32.88  miles.  At  this  point,  the  next 
monumental  structure  of  the  aqueduct,  namely  High  bridge,  was 
erected.  The  valley  of  the  Harlem  river  here,  at  the  aqueduct 
level,  is  1450  feet  wide,  and  it  required  a  structure  of  that 
length  to  conduct  the  water  across  the  river  to  the  Island  of 
Manhattan.  The  width  of  the  river  at  ordinary  high  water  mark 
was  then  620  feet,  but  at  low  ebb  tides  was  reduced  to  about  300 
feet.  It  has  since  been  narrowed  by  filling  out  the  shores.  The 
southeastern  shore  is  bold  and  rocky,  rising  from  the  water's  edge 
at  an  angle  of  about  30°  to  a  height  of  220  feet.  On  the  north- 
western shore,  a  strip  of  table  land  extends  back  from  the  water 
about  400  feet  to  the  foot  of  a  rocky  hill  which  rises  at  an  angle 
of  about  20°  to  a  considerable  height  above  the  level  of  the 
aqueduct. 

Across  this  interval  was  constructed  a  picturesque  masonry 
bridge,  supported,  in  the  Roman  style,  by  piers  connected  by  half 
round  arches.  There  are  fifteen  of  these  arches.  Eight  of  them, 
-ver  the  river  proper,  have  a  span  of  80  feet  each.  The  others 
are  of  50  feet  span.  Across  the  structure,  above  the  arches  and 
below  the  roadbed,  were  originally  laid  two  36-inch  cast  iron 
pipes.  A  third  pipe  90-inches  in  diameter  was  added  in  1860-61. 
The  Chief  Engineer,  John  B.  Jervis,  explained  that  "the  object 
of  using  pipes  in  this  case  is  more  effectually  to  secure  the  con- 
duit from  leakage  that  might  eventually  injure  the  masonry  of 
the  bridge,  and  it  incidentally  allows  the  bridge  to  be  constructed 
of  less  weight." 


6o  The    Croton   Aqueduct 

The  whole  length  of  High  bridge  is  1450  feet;  the  height  of 
the  river  piers  above  high  water  is  60  feet  to  the  spring  of  the 
.arches  and  the  height  from  high  water  mark  to  the  under  side  of 
the  arches  at  their  crown  100  feet.  The  height  to  the  top  of  the 
cornice  was  originally  114  feet  above  high  water  and  149  feet 
above  the  lowest  foundation  of  the  piers,  but  it  was  raised  about 
six  feet  in  1860-63.  The  width  across  the  top  is  21  feet. 

High  bridge  was  not  completed  until  about  six  years  after 
the  other  parts  of  the  aqueduct  had  been  finished,  and  water  did 
not  pass  over  it  until  May,  1848.  Meanwhile,  the  water  had  been 
carried  through  an  inverted  siphon  under  the  Harlem  river  so 
that  it  was  introduced  into  the  City  in  1842  as  stated  hereafter. 
The  cost  of  High  bridge  was  stated  in  1849  to  have  been 
$963,427.80.  The  following  inscription  is  bn  the  southern  face 
of  one  of  the  eastern  piers  of  the  bridge: 

Aqueduct   Bridge 
Begun  1839  Finished  1848 

Stephen  Allen          ) 

Saul  Alley  [ 

C.  Dusenberry          >  Water  Commissioners 

W.  W.  Fox 

T.  T.  Woodruff 


John   B.  Jervis,   Chief 

H.  Allen,  Princ.  Assist.     ^ 

P.  Hastie,  Resident         .'Engineers 


E.  H.  Tracy,  Assistant 


J 

George  Law         1 
Samuel  Roberts    >•  Contractors 
Arnold  Mason     J 

On  the  south  face  of  the  westernmost  pier  is  the  following 
inscription: 

Aqueduct  Bridge 
Finished   December  31,    1848. 

Philip  Hone  ] 

Nathaniel  Weed 

M.  O.  Roberts  ]  Water  Commissioners 

J.  H.  Hobart  Haws    | 

A.  C.  Kingsland         J 

John   B.  Jervis,  Chief  ] 

P.  Hastie,  Resident        £  Engineers 

E.  H.  Tracy,  Assistant] 

I.  Yervalen,  Inspector  of  Masonry  J 

George  Law          ] 

Samuel  Roberts    }•    Contractors 

Arnold  Mason     J 


The    Croton  Aqueduct  61 

Within  20  years  the  capacity  of  High  Bridge  had  to  be 
increased  by  adding  to  the  original  two  cast-iron  conduits  a 
\vrought-imn  pipe  90  inches  in  diameter.  In  order  to  cover  this 
additional  pipe,  the  sides  of  the  bridge  were  raised  about  six 
feet  and  the  structure  was  covered  with  a  Mat  brick  arch  which 
the  pavement  of  the  promenade.  The  latter,  although 
wide  enough  for  vehicles,  is  restricted  to  the  use  of  pedestrians. 
A  wrought  iron  fence  41 !  _>  inches  high  surmounts  the  cornice  on 
either  side  of  the  promenade.  The  improvement  is  recorded  in  an 
inscription  on  the  gate-house  at  the  Manhattan  end  as  follows: 

The   improvement  of  this  bridge  by  adding  the  large 

pipe  raising  the  side  walls  and  covering  the  whole 

work  with  an  arch  was  commenced  Oct.  1860. 

The  new  pipe  was  put  in  operation  Dec.  1861. 

The  masonry  completed  1863. 

CROTOK  AnuEDUCT  BOARD 

Thos.  Stephens 
President  Commissioner. 

Thos.  B.  Tappen  Rob't  L.  Darragh 

.nit  Commiss'r  to  Dec.  4.  1S62        Assistant  Commiss'r  from  Dec.  4,  1862 

Alfred  W.   Craven 
Commissioner  and  Engineer  in  Chief 

Engineers 

Geo.  S.  Greene  Wm.  L.  Dearborn 

Engineer  in  Charge  to  Jan.  31,  1862    Engineer  in  Charge  from  Feb.  1.  1862 

Contractors 
Thos.  F.  Rowland  for  the  pipe  J.  P.  dimming  for  the  masonry 

High  Bridge  was  the  sole  means  of  conveying  Croton  water 
from  the  mainland  to  Manhattan  Island  up  to  July  15,  1890, 
when  water  was  first  supplied  through  the  new  siphon  under  the 
Harlem  river  near  "Washington  bridge. 

The  Yorkville  Reservoir  in  Central  Park 

From  the  Manhattan  end  of  High  bridge,  the  masonry 
aqueduct  continues  two  miles  along  the  line  of  Tenth  avenue  to 
the  high  ground  on  the  north  side  of  Manhattan  valley  at  Man- 
hattan street.  This  valley  is  0.792  of  a  mile  wide  at  the  aque- 
duct level  below  which  it  descends  102  feet.  The  names  of  the 
landmarks  in  Chief  Engineer  Jervis*  description  of  seventy  years 
ago  sound  archaic  to-day.  He  says  that  at  Manhattan  valley 
"the  conduit  of  masonry  here  gives  place  to  iron  pipes  which 


62  The    Croton  Aqueduct 

descend  into  the  bottom  of  the  valley  and  rise  again  to  the  proper 
level  on  the  opposite  side ;  from  which  point  the  masonry  conduit 
is  again  resumed,  and  crossing  the  Asylum  ridge  and  Clendenning 
valley  is  continued  2.173  miles  to  the  receiving  reservoir  at  York 
hill." 

Asylum  ridge  was  the  name  for  Morningside  heights  where 
Columbia  University  now  stands  and  where  the  Bloomingdale 
asylum  formerly  stood.  Clendenning  valley  was  a  depression 
between  101st  and  99th  streets,  named  after  John  Clendenning, 
whose  house  was  at  the  present  104th  street  and  Columbus  avenue. 
And  York  hill,  named  after  the  neighboring  Yorkville,  is  now 
included  in  Central  Park  (which  did  not  then  exist)  between  the 
lines  of  79th  and  86th  streets. 

The  old  Yorkville  reservoir,  as  it  was  called,  is  rectangular 
in  shape,  1,826  feet  long  and  836  feet  wide.  Its  area  at  the  water 
line  is  31  acres,  including  embankments  35.05  acres,  and  with 
accessories  37.05  acres.  It  has  a  storage  capacity  of  150,000,000 
imperial  gallons  according  to  Mr.  Jervis'  figures,  but  more  re- 
cently stated  at  180,000,000.  Of  the  37  acres  occupied  by  the 
reservoir,  27^  acres  were  common  lands  of  the  city,  and  91/* 
acres  were  acquired  in  two  blocks  of  4^4  acres  each  from  Hickson 
W.  Field  and  William  Matthews.  The  City  paid  $11,000  for 
each  of  these  blocks  or  $22,000  for  9T/2  acres.  The  water  was 
admitted  into  the  Yorkville  reservoir  with  due  ceremony  on  June 
27,  1842,  in  the  presence  of  the  Mayor,  the  Common  Council,  the 
Governor,  the  members  of  the  Court  for  the  Correction  of  Errors 
(then  the  highest  court  of  appeals  in  the  state),  and  a  great 
gathering  of  people.  A  feature  of  the  celebration  was  the  ar- 
rival of  the  boat  Croton  Maid.  This  boat,  large  enough  to  hold 
four  persons,  had  been  launched  at  the  Croton  reservoir  thirty- 
eight  miles  distant  and  sent  through  the  aqueduct  to  High  bridge, 
where  it  arrived  June  23.  On  the  27th  it  was  carried  across  the 
Harlem  and  put  into  the  aqueduct  again  and  arrived  at  Central 
Park  soon  after  the  artillery  salute  of  thirty-eight  guns  had 
announced  the  arrival  of  the  water.  The  boat  was  presented  to 
the  fire  department  with  an  appropriate  speech  by  the  President 
of  the  Board  of  Water  Commissioners. 

On  December  17,  1860,  the  Croton  Aqueduct  Board  assented 
to  the  removal  of  the  wall  at  the  southwest  corner  of  the  reser- 
voir, where  the  Belvidere  was  subsequently  erected,  on  condition 


63 


64  The    Croton  Aqueduct 

that  the  Park  Commissioners  should  place  some  suitable  monu- 
ment to  mark  the  line  of  the  aqueduct  property ;  that  no  public 
walk  be  made  on  the  property ;  and  that  no  objection  would  be 
made  at  any  time  to  the  reoccupation  of  the  corner  by  the  aque- 
duct commissioners.  This  reservoir  is  soon  to  be  abandoned 
for  aqueduct  purposes  and  the  Mayor's  Catskill  Aqueduct  Cele- 
bration Committee  is  developing  plans  for  adding  it  to  Central 
Park  as  a  permanent  memorial  of  the  aqueduct. 

The   Murray   Hill   Reservoir 

From  the  upper  reservoir  at  Yorkville,  a  double  line  of  iron 
pipes  3  feet  in  diameter  was  laid  to  Fifth  avenue  and  thence  to 
the  distributing  reservoir  which  formerly  stood  on  the  west  side 
of  Fifth  avenue  between  40th  and  42nd  streets.  This  reservoir 
was  420  feet  square  on  the  cornice  of  the  exterior  \vall  and  con- 
tained 4.05  acres.  It  had  an  average  elevation  of  44.5  feet  above 
the  street  level,  the  greatest  height  being  49  feet.  The  walls 
were  of  hydraulic  masonry,  constructed  with  openings  to  reduce 
the  quantity  of  masonry  and  give  a  larger  base.  The  reservoir 
was  composed  of  a  double  wall.  The  outer  wall  had  a  bevel  of 
one  to  six  and  was  uniformly  four  feet  thick.  The  inner  wall,, 
which  had  a  vertical  inner  face,  was  six  feet  thick  at  the  bottom 
and  four  at  the  top.  There  were  cross  walls  and  arches  in  the 
interspace.  On  the  outside  walls  an  Egyptian  cornice  was  laid, 
which  was  in  keeping  with  the  sloping  architecture.  The  reser- 
voir was  designed  to  hold  a  depth  of  36  feet  of  wrater,  or  a 
capacity  of  20,000,000  imperial  gallons.  The  surface  of  the  water, 
when  the  reservoir  was  full,  was  115  feet  above  mean  tide.  The 
water  was  admitted  to  this  reservoir  with  formal  ceremonies  on. 
July  4,  1842.  The  reservoir  was  then  described  as  being  "at 
Murray  hill,  a  short  drive  from  the  city."  The  total  length  of 
the  aqueduct  .from  Croton  dam  to  this  point  is  45.562  miles. 

In 'the  spring  of  1899,  a  contract  was  let  for  the  removal 
of  the  reservoir  to  make  room  for  the  Xew  York  Public  Library 
which  now  occupies  its  site,  but  the  process  of  removal  was 
slow,  and  portions  of  the  massive  walls  remained  standing  long 
after  the  library  building  had  been  begun.  The  cornerstone  of 
the  library  was  laid  on  November  10,  1902,  and  the  completed 
building  was  dedicated  on  May  2,  1911.  By  the  thoughtfulness 
of  Mr.  Thomas  i  lastings,  architect,  the  memorial  inscription  from 
the  old  reservoir  is  preserved  in  the  Public  Library. 


The    Croton  Aqueduct  65 

Extension  to  City  Hall  Park 

On  October  14,  1842,  the  water  was  admitted  to  the  fountain 
in  City  Hall  Park  with  still  further  ceremonies,  including  a  pro- 
cession seven  miles  long.  The  fountain  was  situated  in  the  tri- 
angular area  now  occupied  by  the  post-office.  At  that  time,  there 
was  an  unobstructed  view  from  the  junction  of  Broadway  and 
Chatham  street  (Park  row)  in  front  of  St.  Paul's  chapel  to  the 
City  Hall.  The  larger  park  was  embowered  with  trees,  in  the 
midst  of  which  the  Croton  fountain  was  for  many  years  a  grace- 
ful ornament. 

In  a  statement  of  the  real  estate  belonging  to  the  City  of 
Xew  York  published  in  the  Corporation  Manual  for  1852,  the 
value  of  the  Croton  water-works  at  that  time  was  stated  as 
follows : 

Croton   aqueduct    $14,200,000 

Yorkville   reservoir    134,000 

Murray   Hill  reservoir    .  152,000 


$14,486,000 

Since  that  time  the  Croton  water-supply  and  the  water- 
works system  have  been  enormously  increased,  and  it  is  impos- 
sible here  to  follow  out  its  details.  One  or  two  further  features, 
however,  may  be  mentioned. 

Lake    Manahatta  in   Central   Park 

One  enlargment  of  interest  was  the  building  of  the  new 
reservoir  or  Lake  Manahatta  in  Central  Park.  In  less  than  a 
decade  after  the  introduction  of  the  Croton  water  supply,  the 
city  realized  that  it  did  not  have  storage  capacity  enough  in  its 
reservoirs  to  protect  it  against  a  serious  drouth,  and  on  February 
5.  1851,  the  Common  Council  directed  the  Croton  Aqueduct 
Board  "to  purchase  without  unnecessary  delay  enough  suitable 
ground  for  a  new  reservoir  of  sufficient  capacity  with  those 
already  built  to  contain  a  supply  for  at  least  sixty  days'  con- 
sumption." The  Board  thereupon  carefully  examined  the  island 
and  on  February  9,  1852,  voted  to  appropriate  for  that  purpose 
the  rectangular  area  comprised  between  Fifth  and  Seventh  ave- 
nues and  Eighty-sixth  and  Xinety-sixth  streets,  as  those  streets 
were  laid  out  on  the  city  plan  by  the  Commissioners  of  1807.  On 
Mav  21.  1852.  the  Board  recommended  to  the  court  the  follow- 


66  The    Croton  Aqueduct 

ing  named  gentlemen  as  Commissioners  of  Estimate  of  the  value 
of  the  ground  to  be  taken:  Daniel  Dodge,  Samuel  B.  Ruggles, 
Ezra  P.  Davis,  Jacob  S.  Baker,  Jedediah  Miller  and  Anthony  J. 
Bleecker. 

Before  work  was  begun  on  the  reservoir,  Central  Park  was 
created,  including  the  reservoir  area,  and  the  Park  Commissioners 
proposed  an  exchange  of  territory  by  which  the  new  reservoir, 
instead  of  being  rectangular,  would  follow  natural  contours  and 
by  avoiding  some  rock  excavation,  would  save  from  $200,000  to 
$250,000  in  the  cost  of  construction.  The  Croton  Aqueduct  Board, 
therefore,  on  June  6,  1857,  consented  to  the  change  and  the 
reservoir  was  built  as  it  now  exists.  The  land  for  this  reservoir, 
purchased  under  an  act  of  the  Legislature  of  June  30,  1853, 
comprises  106.726  acres,  and  the  reservoir,  which  covers  ninety- 
six  acres,  has  a  capacity  of  1,030,000,000  gallons.  On  April  14, 
1858,  the  sum  of  $729,964.50  was  awarded  for  the  site. 

This  new  reservoir,  called  on  a  map  of  1859,  Manahatta 
Lake,*  in  the  records  of  the  Aqueduct  Board  the  Grand  Reser- 
voir, and  popularly  the  New  Reservoir,  was  completed  in  1862 
and  the  water  was  admitted  on  August  19th  with  due  ceremony. 
The  minutes  of  the  Croton  Aqueduct  Board  of  that  date  read 
as  follows: 

"The  water  was  let  into  the  new  Grand  Reservoir  on  this 
day  at  3  P.  M.  The  signal  was  given  by  Chief  Engineer  Alfred 
W.  Craven,  Esq.,  when  the  ten  influent  gates  were  raised  simul- 
taneously, and  the  Croton  flowed  through  to  the  delight  of  the 
thousands  that  were  present  to  witness  the  great  event.  His 
Honor  the  Mayor  then  introduced  Myndert  Van  Shaick,  who 
delivered  an  address,  after  which  Mr.  McChesney  recited  an 
ode  prepared  for  the  occasion,  and  with  an  address  by  Mr.  Marsh 
and  music  by  Mr.  H.  Dodworth's  band  the  ceremonies  ended  and 
the  assembled  multitude  dispersed  to  pay  their  respects  to  the 
contractors,  Messrs.  Fairchild,  Walker  &  Company,  at  their 
office." 

New  Croton  Aqueduct 

On  account  of  the  phenomenal  growth  of  the  city,  it  became 
necessary  not  only  to  build  additional  reservoirs  from  time  to 
time,  but  also  to  build  another  aqueduct  from  the  Croton  valley 
to  conduct  the  increased  supply  of  water  to  Manhattan  island. 
Such  a  new  conduit  was  built  in  1885-1893.  It  is  almost  entirely 

*  Mayor  Tiemann  so  named  it  at  the  ceremonies  attending  the  induction  of  the 
water,  saying:  "  Our  new  lake  of  the  Manahatta  will  far  surpass  the  dimensions  of  the- 
old  kolch  "  (or  fresh-water  pond). 


The    Croton  Aqueduct  67 

a  tunnel  from  Croton  lake  to  the  terminal  gate-house  at  135th 
street  and  Convent  avenue,  a  distance  of  31  miles.  At  this  gate- 
house the  old  aqueduct  is  connected  with  the  new.  The  old 
Croton  aqueduct,  with  a  capacity  of  90,000,000  gallons  a  day  and 
the  new  Croton  aqueduct  with  a  capacity  of  300,000,000  gallons 
a  day.  were  supplemented  in  1880  and  1885  by  an  additional  sup- 
ply of  22.000,000  gallons  a  day  by  a  conduit  bringing  water  from 
the  Bronx  and  Byram  rivers. 

The  Cornell  or  New  Croton  Dam 

When  the  plans  were  made  in  1882-1885  for  an  enlarged 
water-supply,  they  included  the  project  for  a  high  masonry  dam 
across  the  Croton  river  about  two  miles  from  its  mouth,  at  the 
side  of  the  old  Quaker  bridge.  Owing  to  local  opposition  to  this 
site,  another  location  was  selected  about  1*4  miles  farther  up- 
stream on  the  land  of  A.  B.  Cornell  and  others.  The  dam  here 
constructed  was  at  first  called  the  Cornell  dam,  but  later  was 
designated  as  the  Xew  Croton  dam,  to  distinguish  it  from  the 
old  Croton  dam  Zy2  miles  farther  up-stream. 

The  rock  at  the  dam  site  is  gneiss  on  the  north  side  of  the 
valley  and  limestone  in  the  center  and  on  the  south  side. 

The  contract  for  building  the  dam  was  awarded  August  26, 
1892;  work  was  begun  in  the  fall  of  1892;  the  first  stone  in  the 
foundation  was  laid  May  26,  1896;  the  dam  was  nearly  finished 
and  the  gates  were  closed  January  28,  1905,  beginning  the  storage 
of  water,  the  work  was  completed  January  1,  1906;  and  by 
November  5.  1907,  the  reservoir  was  full  to  high  water  mark. 

The  total  length  of  the  masonry  and  earth  dams  across  the 
channel  is  1600  feet;  the  total  height  from  bottom  of  founda- 
tion about  240  feet ;  and  the  maximum  thickness  of  masonry  at 
the  bottom  206  feet.  The  thickness  of  masonry  decreased  toward 
the  top  until  it  is  only  about  15  feet  thick  under  the  roadway. 
The  roadway  has  a  width  of  19j^  feet  by  being  carried  out  on 
corbels.  The  reservoir  thus  formed  is  about  19  miles  long  and 
stores  about  33,815,000,000  gallons. 

The  plans  for  the  new  Croton  dam  were  prepared  under  the 
direction  of  the  late  Alphonse  Fteley,  Chief  Engineer  of  the 
Aqueduct  Commissioners.  They  were  modified  as  the  work  pro- 
gressed. The  construction  was  carried  on  under  his  supervision 
until  January  1,  1900;  then  under  Mr.  William  R.  Hill  until 


68 


The    Croton  Aqueduct 


October  14,  1903;  Mr.  J.  Waldo  Smith  until  August  1,  1905;  and 
Mr.  Walter  H.  Sears  until  completion. 

The  cost  of  the  dam,  not  including  engineering,  land  and 
legal  expenses,  was  $6,886,872. 

Even  this  provision  was  not  adequate  to  the  growing  needs 
of  the  City,  and  two  more  sources  were  added  in  1908  and  1911, 

making    the    total    storage    capacity    of    the  Croton  system  as 
follows : 

Service 

Reservoir  Begun 

Old   Croton   Lake 1842 

Boyd's  Corners    1873  2,727,000,000 

Middle  Branch    1878  4,155,000,000 

East  Branch    (Sodom) 1891  5,243,000,000 

Bog  Brook  1891  4,400,000,000 

Titicus    1893  7,617,000,000 

West  Branch  (Carmel) 1895  10,668,000,000 

Amawalk .  1897  7,086,000,000 

New  Croton  1905  33,815,000,000 

Cross  River ..  .  .  .  1908  10,923,000,000 

Croton   Falls    1911  15,753,000,000 


Gallons  of 
Storage  Capacity 


102,387,000,000 


69 


Chapter  VI 
Other  Borough  Water-Supplies 

Borough  of  Brooklyn 

The  town  of  Brooklyn  was  settled  in  1636,  ten  years  after 
the  first  permanent  settlement  of  New  Amsterdam,  and  the  early 
histories  of  the  water-supplies  of  the  two  communities  were  very 
much  alike,  both  depending  on  natural  springs,  streams,  ponds 
and  wells.  But  on  account  of  the  differences  in  geographical 
and  geological  situation,  the  two  developed  very  differently  after 
the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century.  Old  New  York  City, 
lying  on  a  rocky  island  only  13  miles  long  and  from  1  to  2J4 
miles  wide,  had  small  natural  resources  for  water  and  was  early 
driven  to  seek  an  artificial  supply.  Brooklyn,  situated  on  an 
island  which  is  115  miles  long  and  from  12  to  24  miles  wide,  and 
which  is  composed  largely  of  sand  and  gravel,  was  able  longer  to 
use  natural  sources,  and,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  she  relied  exclusively 
upon  springs,  streams,  ponds  and  wells  up  to  the  year  1859  and 
largely  so  up  to  the  present  time.* 

The  first  suggestion  of  a  general  water-supply  was  made  in 
1832,  two  years  before  the  village  of  Brooklyn  was  incorporated 
as  a  city;  and  after  Brooklyn  became  a  city,  the  subject  was  dis- 
cussed over  and  over  again  without  substantial  results  for  twenty 
years.  Numerous  committees  were  appointed  and  made  reports. 
Some  recommended  co-operation  with  New  York  in  using  Croton 
water;  others  advocated  using  the  streams  of  Long  Island;  and 
still  others  the  construction  of  wells  in  or  near  the  city.  In  1851, 
a  supply  from  the  Bronx  river  was  added  to  the  sources  proposed. 

In  these  discussions,  the  underground  water  condition  of 
Long  Island  was  the  subject  of  earnest  and  at  times  contentious 
discussion.  There  were  those  who  thought  that  the  water  existed 
in  veins ;  others  who  thought  there  were  subterranean  rivers ;  and 
others  who  held  that  the  whole  island  was  saturated  with  water. 
When  William  ].  McAlpine  in  1852  recommended  artesian  wells, 
Prof.  William  W.  Mather's  report  on  the  geology  of  New  York 

*  I.  M.  de  Varona,  in  his  "  History  and  Description  of  the  Water  Supply  of  Brook- 
lyn, 1896,  says  that  prior  to  the  introduction  of  Croton  water  in  New  York  City, 
Brooklyn  wells  were  largely  drawn  upon  for  New  York's  water  supply. 


Other    Borough  Water-Supplies  71 

was  quoted  to  refute  it.  There  were  those  who  believed  that  a 
well  fifty  feet  deep  would  draw  salt  waters.  At  one  time  an  open 
canal  was  advocated.  The  best  plan  that  the  municipal  authori- 
ties could  evolve  after  nearly  20  years  of  discussion  wras  sub- 
mitted to  the  people  in  1853  and  voted  down. 

While  these  futile  efforts  were  being  made  by  the  public 
authorities,  an  enterprising  private  water  corporation  was  formed, 
somewhat  parelleling  Xew  York's  early  experience  with  the 
Manhattan  Company.  In  1852,  the  Williamsburgh  Water  Works 
company  was  incorporated,  with  a  view  to  taking  water  from 
a  well  within  the  city  limits  and  from  springs  on  the  north  side 
of  Long  Island,  and  made  a  formal  offer  to  supply  the  City  of 
Brooklyn.  This  raised  the  question  wrhether  the  city  should 
depend  upon  a  private  company  for  its  water  or  should  possess 
its  own  supply.  In  the  exigencies  of  the  situation,  the  Common 
Council  held  secret  sessions  and  public  interest  was  greatly 
stirred.  In  one  of  these  secret  sessions,  a  plan  recommended  by 
Mr.  Me  Alpine  was  approved.  The  plan  provided  for  collecting 
at  Baisley's  pond  the  water  of  certain  streams  emptying  into 
Jamaica  and  Hempstead  Bays;  conducting  it  in  a  conduit  9 
miles  long  to  a  pump-well  w-here  it  was  to  be  pumped  into  a 
reservoir  on  Mount  Prospect,  near  Prospect  Park.  In  1853,  a 
modified  plan  was  submitted  to  the  people's  vote  and  rejected. 
In  1854,  the  annexation  of  the  City  of  Williamsburgh  and  town 
of  Bush  wick  to  Brooklyn  gave  renewed  impetus  to  the  subject. 

Meanwhile,  the  Williamsburgh  Water-Wrorks  company  had 
undergone  changes,  its  name  being  changed  first  to  the  Long 
Island  Water-Works  company,  and  then  (in  1855)  to  the  Brook- 
lyn Water  company.  In  the  latter  year,  the  Nassau  Water  com- 
pany was  incorporated,  with  power  to  absorb  the  Brooklyn  Water 
company.  All  this  time,  the  company  had  been  gradually  acquir- 
ing water  rights,  until  it  became  necessary  for  the  city  either  to 
buy  it  out  or  use  its  water,  although  the  city  too  had  been  buying 
land  and  water  rights  here  and  there  for  its  own  use. 

In  1856  the  Common  Council  subscribed  $1,300,000  to  the 
stock  of  the  Nassau  Water  company  upon  condition  that  it  should 
construct  works  capable  of  supplying  20,000,000  gallons  a  day : 
that  it  should  purchase  the  lands  bought  by  the  city  which  were 
necessary  for  the  purpose ;  and  that  the  city  should  have  the 
privilege  of  buying  out  the  whole  plant  at  cost.  This  was  the 


72  Other    Borough  Water-Supplies 

beginning  of  'the  Ridgewood  system ;  and  the  inaugural  celebra- 
tion was  held  on  the  site  of  the  Ridgewood  reservoir  July  31, 
1856.  In  the  following  year  the  city  availed  itself  of  its  privilege 
and  bought  out  the  Nassau  Water  company  and  finished  the  work 
itself-.  On  November  18,  1858,  water  was  first  pumped  into  the 
Ridgewood  reservoir;  water  was  admitted  to  the  distributing 
mains  on  December  4,  and  on  December  16  it  was  used  for  the 
first  time  in  the  city  to  extinguish  fires.  On  April  27  and  28, 
1859,  the  successful  completion  of  the  main  features  of  the  plan 
was  marked  by  a  public  celebration.  Prior  to  this  event,  Brook- 
lyn water  had  come  exclusively  from  wells  and  cisterns. 

In  1872  the  construction  of  the  Hempstead  reservoir  was 
begun  and  the  water-supply  was  further  augmented  from  time 
to  time  by  pumping  stations  at  various  ponds.  In  1889,  the  con- 
struction, of  a  new  reservoir  at  Millburn,  a  48-inch  pipe  line 
connecting  it  with  the  engine  house  at  Ridgewood,  and  various 
supply  ponds  and  intermediate  conduits  were  contracted  for. 

The  Ridgewood  system  was  expanded  at  successive  periods 
until  1898  it  embraced  practically  all  the  water-shed  of  Queens 
county,  bounded  in  the  north  by  the  ridge  forming  the  back- 
bone of  Long  Island,  on  the  east  approximately  by  Suffolk  county, 
on  the  south  by  the  salt  meadows  bordering  Hempstead  and 
Jamaica  bays,  and  on  the  west  by  Kings  county. 

While  the  events  above  narrated  were  occurring,  private 
water-works  were  organized  in  New  Lots,  Flatbush,  New 
Utrecht  and  Gravesend. 

The  plant  at  New  Lots,  belonging  to  the  Long  Island  Water- 
Supply  Co.,  was  located  on  New  Lots  avenue  at  the  head  of 
Fresh  creek  and  was  built  in  1881. 

The  New  Utrecht  Water  Co.,  had  its  plant  at  the  corner  of 
East  14th  street  and  Avenue  E.  It  was  acquired  by  the  City  of 
Brooklyn  in  1895. 

The  Gravesend  Water-Works,  built  by  the  town  of  Graves- 
end  about  1892,  was  located  on  17th  street  between  Avenues 
R  and  S.  It  became  the  property  of  Brooklyn  in  1895. 

The  works  of  the  Flatbush  Water  company  were  built  in 
1882  at  the  head  of  Paerdegat  creek,  near  the  intersection  of 
New  York  avenue  and  Avenue  E. 

The  Flatbush  Water-Works  is  still  a  private  company  serv- 
ing the  29th  ward. 


Other   Borough  Water-Supplies  73 

Another  private  concern,  the  Blythebourne  Water  company, 
serves  a  portion  of  the  30th  ward. 

Tp  to  the  year  1896,  just  before  her  consolidation  with 
Greater  Xew  York,  Brooklyn  had  bought  2,706  acres  of  land 
at  a  cost  of  $1,261,271,  and  spent  $22,102,700  for  the  construc- 
tion or  purchase  of  water-works.  She  then  had  an  average  water- 
supply  of  about  75,735,000  gallons  a  day  from  the  Ridgewood 
system,  which  the  subsequent  completion  of  the  Millburn  works 
increased  to  about  99,000,000  gallons  a  day.  She  owned  fifteen 
supply  ponds  with  an  area  of  215  acres  and  storage  capacity  of 
264,489,000  gallons,  as  follows:  Baisley's,  Springfield,  Simon- 
son's,  Clear  stream,  Watt's,  Valley  stream,  Pine's,  Hempstead, 
Smith's,  Millburn,  East  Meadow,  Newbridge,  Wantagh,  Sea- 
man's, and  Massapequa  pond. 

In  1916,  Brooklyn  had  an  average  water-supply  of  73,000,- 
000  a  day  from  drawn  wells  of  a  depth  of  from  30  to  several 
hundred  feet ;  34,000,000  gallons  a  day  from  infiltration  gal- 
leries laid  for  nearly  six  miles  about  ten  to  fifteen  feet  below  the 
water-table;  and  20,000,000  gallons  a  day  from  surface  supplies. 

Borough  of  Queens 

For  the  Borough  of  Queens  no  municipal  \vater-works  of 
magnitude  have  been  constructed.  Prior  to  1913  the  First  ward 
was  served  by  three  local  municipal  pumping  stations  and  by 
private  water  companies.  Between  1913  and  1917  it  was  served 
largely  from  the  Brooklyn  watershed.  The  Third  ward,  prior 
to  1917,  was  served  by  two  municipal  pumping  stations,  while 
the  Second,  Fourth  and  Fifth  wards  were  and  still  are  supplied 
by  private  water  companies,  their  source^  of  supply  being  entirely 
ground  water  collected  by  means  of  driven  wells.  The  Citizens' 
Water  Supply  company  of  Xewtown  and  the  Urban  Water  com- 
pany furnish  water  for  the  Second  ward,  the  Jamaica  Water  Sup- 
ply company  and  the  Woodhaven  Water  Supply  company  for  the 
Fourth  ward  and  the  Queens  County  Water  company  for  the 
Fifth  ward.  About  400,000  citizens  of  Brooklyn  and  Queens 
Boroughs,  consuming  nearly  40,000,000  gallons  a  day,  are  still 
dependent  on  private  water  companies. 

Borough  of  the  Bronx 
The  region  now  comprised  within  the  Borough  of  the  Bronx 


74  Other    Borough  Water-Supplies 

was  favorably  situated  with  respect  to  its  natural  water  resources. 
Traversed  by  more  than  a  score  of  rivers  and  creeks  of  consid- 
erable size,  among  which  may  be  mentioned  Bronx  river,  Tip- 
pett's  brook,  Cromwell's  creek,  Westchester  creek  and .  Eastches- 
ter  or  Hutchinson's  river,  and  with  a  soil  well  adapted  for  springs 
and  wells,  the  early  settlers  did  not  lack  good  water  for  domestic 
use  or  sufficient  volume  to  turn  the  wheels  of  several  consider- 
able mills.  Among  the  best  known  of  the  latter  were  the  Van 
Cortlandt  grist  mill  in  what  is  now  Van  Cortlandt  Park  and  the 
Lorillard  Tobacco  mill  in  Bronx  Park. 

On  January  1,  1874,  that  portion  of  Westchester  county  west 
of  the  Bronx  and  south  of  the  Yonkers  line  was  annexed  to  the 
City  of  New  York;  on  July  1,  1895,  the  24th  ward  was  some- 
what enlarged  on  the  east  of  the  Bronx;  and  on  January  1,  1898,^ 
the  remainder  of  the  present  borough  was  added  to  the  ctiy. 

With  these  successive  additions  of  territory,  the  responsi- 
bility of  the  city  with  respect  to  its  water  supply  increased,  and 
in  October,  1880,  it  began  to  develop  the  Bronx  and  Byram 
watersheds  for  the  supply  of  the  higher  levels  of  the  Annexed 
District.  The  plan  comprised  a  dam  at  the  outlet  of  Little  Rye 
pond  converting  the  two  Rye  ponds  into  a  reservoir  holding 
1,050,000,000  gallons;  a  dam  across  the  Bronx  river  near  Kensico 
station  on  the  Harlem  railroad,  making  a  reservoir  holding 
1,620,000,000  gallons;  a  dam  across  Byram  river  a  fifth  of  a 
mile  north  of  the  state  line,  making  a  reservoir  of  180,000,000 
gallons,  and  a  48-inch  conduit  fifteen  miles  long  from  Kensico 
reservoir  to  a  reservoir  on  Gun  hill  near  Wllliamsbridge,  which 
latter  had  a  capacity  of  120,000,000  gallons.  In  addition  to  the 
above,  Byram  pond  held  550,000,000  gallons.  The  connection 
between  Kensico  and  Williamsbridge  reservoirs  was  made  Sep- 
tember 4,  1884,  and  the  other  developments  gradually  followed. 
In  1902  connection  was  made  with  the  old  Croton  aqueduct  by 
means  of  a  48-inch  pipe  for  supplying  lower  levels  in  the  Bronx ; 
and  there  were  some  connections  from  Manhattan  under  the 
Harlem  river  for  supplying  some  of  the  nearer  areas  of  the  main- 
land borough. 

There  was  one  private  water-supply  company  in  the  Bronx 
borough  area,  the  Westchester  Water  Company,  which  supplied 
Westchester  Village  and  vicinity.  Between  1900  and  1902  the 
city  bought  out  the  interests  of  this  company  within,  the  city  line, 
but  it  still  serves  water  to  communities  just  outside  the  city. 


•  to 

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It! 


-6  Other    Borough  Water — Supplies 

There  are  still  many  private  \yells  in  use  in  this  borough. 

Jerome  Park  reservoir,  an  adjunct  of  the  Croton  system 
was  begun  in  1895  and  its  western  basin  was  finished  in  1905.  It 
holds  773,000,000  gallons.  Its  eastern  basin  was  never  completed, 
and  in  1911  the  Legislature  authorized  the  use  of  part  of  the 
ground  for  an  armory. 

In  recent  years,  nearly  three-fourths  of  the  Bronx  borough 
supply  came  from  the  Croton  and  the  remainder  from  the  Bronx 
and  Byram  watersheds.  As  stated  hereafter,  the  old  Kensico 
reservoir  has  been  merged  in  the  new  Kensico  reservoir  of  the 
Catskill  system,  and  at  that  point,  the  supplies  from  the  Bronx 
and  Byram  watersheds  become  merged  in  the  Catskill  supply. 

Borough  of  Richmond 

Prior  to  1917  the  Borough  of  Richmond  was  dependent  for 
its  supply  on  ground  water  drawn  from  wells.  Until  1909,. 
except  at  Tottenville,  it  was  served  by  private  water  companies^ 
the  principal  of  which  were  in  that  year  acquired  by  the  city. 


Chapter  VII. 
The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

The  Evolution  of  the  Project 

The  history  of  the  evolution  of  the  Catskill  aqueduct  project 
is  full  of  intense  interest  and  civic  significance,  and  to  write  it 
fully  would  require  a  volume  by  itself.  For  the  purposes  of 
this  pamphlet,  only  a  few  leading  events  must  suffice. 

All  history  is  an  endless  chain  of  cause  and  effect,  and  the 
question  of  the  water-supply  of  any  growing  community  is  never- 
ending.  Nevertheless,  one  is  able  to  point  out  quite  definitely 
the  origin  of  the  Catskill  aqueduct  idea. 

\Yith  a  population  which  was  approaching  3,500,000  souls 
in  the  area  of  Greater  Xew  York  at  the  time  of  municipal  con- 
solidation in  1898  and  which  was  increasing  at  the  rate  of  a  mil- 
lion a  decade ;  with  the  Croton  water  supply  developed  to  its 
fullest  extent  and  confessedly  running  behind  the  needs  of  Man- 
hattan and  the  Bronx :  with  Brooklyn,  Queens  and  Richmond 
boroughs  relying  on  local  supplies  largely  derived  from  wells  and 
in  many  cases  purveyed  by  private  companies ;  and  with  alarming 
deficiencies  in  rainfall  in  1895  and  1896,  it  was  plainly  manifest 
that  something  must  be  done  and  done  quickly  to  avert  a  calamit- 
ous shortage  of  water  in  the  near  future. 

This  realization  came  with  especial  force  to  certain  individ- 
uals and  civic  organizations.  On  November  2,  1896,  the  Man- 
ufacturers Association  of  Brooklyn,  under  the  leadership  of  Mr. 
Charles  N.  Chadwick,  took  the  active  initiative  by  appointing  a 
committee,  of  which  Mr.  Chadwick  was  Chairman,  to  investigate 
the  problem  of  Brooklyn's  water-supply.  The  reports  of  this 
committee  are  very  suggestive  of  the  civic  foresight  and  the  thor- 
oughness of  research  which  Andrew  H.  Green,  "The  Father  'of 
Greater  New  York,"  manifested  in  his  writings  in  advocacy  of 
municipal  consolidation.  Lacking, — as  the  committee's  report  of 
March  15,  1897,  stated, — the  power  to  bring  rain  from  the  clouds 
by  incantations  like  the  Indian  Rainmaker,  or  to  bring  water  from 
the  rocks  by  smiting  them  with  a  rod  like  Moses,  or  to  discover 
subterranean  streams  by  means  of  the  forked  witch-hazel  stick, 


;8  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

Mr.  Chadwick  investigated  the  subject  with  all  the  practical 
thoroughness  that  human  limitations  would  permit.  He  made  a 
particular  study  of  the  water-supplies  of  200  cities  in  this  coun- 
try and  Europe,  including  that  of  the  Metropolitan  district  which 
was  soon  to  become  Greater  New  York.  He  found  that  the  sister 
cities  and  smaller  communities  in  this  area  never  had  a  settled 
plan  for  developing  water-supply  and  had  lived  only  in  a  hand- 
to-mouth  way  with  inadequate  appropriations  for  any  large  pro- 
vision for  the  future.  He  believed  the  question  should  be  han- 
dled in  a  broader  way  than  ever  before,  and  out  of  his  studies  he 
developed  four  fundamental  ideas :  First,  that  the  new  water- 
supply  should  be  comprehensive  enough  to  include  the  whole  of 
the  future  Greater  City;  second,  that  it  should  be  financed  by 
separating  the  water  debt  from  the  constitutional  debt  limit  of 
the  city ;  third,  that  in  planning  and  providing  this  larger  water- 
supply,  there  should  be  continuity  of  administration  outside  of 
the  field  of  political  influence ;  and  fourth,  that  provision  should 
be  made  looking  to  the  needs  of  the  Metropolis  for  at.  least  half 
a  century  to  come.  The  influence  of  these  ideas  may  be  traced 
through  all  the  formative  events  which  followed  the  report  of  the 
Manufacturers  Association. 

It  is  also  a  significant  fact,  which  deserves  to  be  dwelt  on 
at  greater  length  than  the  limits  of  these  pages  will  permit,  that 
while  the  project  of  the  Catskill  aqueduct  encountered  great 
apathy  and  even  opposition  in  many  quarters,  it  received  the  help- 
ful and  indispensable  co-operation  of  other  civic  bodies,  notably 
the  Chamber  of  Commerce  of  the  State  of  New  York,  the  Mer- 
chants Association  of  New  York,  the  City  Club,  the  New  York 
Board  of  Trade  and  Transportation,  the  Brooklyn  League,  the 
Flatbush  Taxpayers  Association,  the  Citizens  Union,  the  New 
York  Board  of  Fire  Underwriters,  the  People's  Institute,  the 
East  Side  Civic  Club,  the  West  End  Association,  etc.  It  was 
a  citizens'  movement  throughout,  animated  by  the  highest  and 
most  disinterested  motives. 

In  1897,  the  possible  new  sources  of  water  under  considera- 
tion were  the  Ten  Mile  river  and  Housatonic  river  as  a  continua- 
tion of  the  Croton  watershed ;  the  Delaware  river  at  Port  Jervis, 
N.  Y. ;  the  Ramapo  watershed;  and  the  Catskill  Mountains,  with 
the  Adirondacks  ultimately  in  view.  As  a  last  resort,  more  par- 
ticularly for  Brooklyn,  the  Long  Island  watershed  was  not  for- 
gotten. 


The  Catskill  Aqueduct  79 

A  serious  obstacle  to  a  free  survey  of  all  possible  sources, 
however,  was  presented  by  the  existence  of  the  Ramapo  Water 
Company.  This  company,  which  had  been  incorporated  by  certifi- 
cate in  1887,  had  in  1895  secured  the  passage  of  a  law  entitled 
"An  act  to  limit  and  define  the  powers  of  the  Ramapo  Water 
Company."  Instead  of  "limiting"  its  powers,  the  act  enlarged 
them  so  that  it  was  authorized  to  acquire  lands  in  the  Ramapo 
watershed  by  condemnation  in  the  same  manner  as  a  r°ilrOad 
company;  and  to  construct  reservoirs  and  water-works  and  to 
supply  water  for  municipal,  domestic,  manufacturing  and  agri- 
cultural purposes.  It  was  also  authorized- to  lay  pipes  under  the 
navigable  streams  of  the  state.  These  broad  powers  aroused 
intense  public  criticism  and  an  effort  was  immediately  begun  for 
their  repeal.  In  this  campaign,  which  proved  successful,  the  Mer- 
chants Association,  under  the  leadership  of  Mr.  Henry  R. 
Towne,*  performed  public  service  of  inestimable  value.  In  1901 , 
the  Legislature  repealed  the  Ramapo  act  of  1895. 

Meanwhile,  on  March  23,  1900,  Mr.  John  R.  Freeman,  civil 
engineer,  reported  to  the  Comptroller  that  the  Croton,  Bronx  and 
Byram  watersheds  would  supply  Manhattan  and  Bronx  Boroughs 
for  only  five  years.  This  was  fresh  evidence  of  the  need  for 
expedition ;  and  in  the  Legislature  of  1901  the  Manufacturers 
Association  secured  the  introduction  of  a  bill,  drafted  by  Mr. 
Chadwick,  providing  for  the  appointment  of  a  Board  of  Water 
Commissioners  with  mandatory  powers  to  go  ahead  and  provide 
an  enlarg-ed  water-supply.  The  bill  failed  to  pass  and  was  rein- 
troduced  in  1902,  slightly  amended,  and  providing,  among  other 
things,  for  the  appointment  of  the  members  of  the  board  by  the 
Mayor.  Again  the  bill  failed  to  pass,  but  efforts  were  not  relaxed. 

On  November  30,  1903,  Prof.  William  H.  Burr,  Mr.  Rudolph 
Hering  and  Mr.  John  R.  Freeman,  constituting  a  Commission 
on  Additional  Water  Supply,  made  a  notable  report  which  not 
only  added  impetus  to  the  movement  but  was  also  immensely 
helpful  in  later  selecting  the  Catskill  watersheds. 

In  1904,  two  important  strides  were  made  toward  the 
attainment  of  the  goal.  The  first  was  the  getting  together  of  the 
civic  organizations  in  concerted  work.  The  second  was  the 
enlistment  of  Mayor  McClellan's  interest. 

"  Mr.  Towne's  services  were  not  confined  to  this  one  phase  of  the  subject.  lie- 
has  been  one  of  the  ablest  and  most  untiring  advocates  of  the  aqueduct;  and  his  aid  in 
shaping  public  sentiment  and  m  securing  proper  legislation  entitle  him  to  special  credit 
as  one  of  the  "  fathers  "  of  this  great  public  work. 


8o  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

The  first  of  these  was  achieved  at  a  joint  conference  held 
at  the  City  Club  on  June  9,  1904.  All  of  the  civic  organizations 
mentioned  on  page  78  preceding  were  represented.  Prof.  Burr 
and  Mr.  Hering  explained  to  the  conference  the  situation  which 
confronted  the  City;  and  Mr.  Chadwick  emphasized  the  necessity 
of  getting  down  to  practical  work  and  formulating  a  plan.  He 
also  urged  the  necessity  of  separating  the  water-debt  from  the 
debt  limit,  so  that  the  project  could  be  amply  financed;  and  of 
creating  a  commission  with  large  powers,  like  the  Rapid  Transit 
Commission,  to  carry  on  the  work.  The  meeting  resulted  in  the 
appointment  of  a  representative  committee  of  these  civic  bodies, 
and  from  that  time  forward  there  was  splendid  "team  work"  be- 
tween them.  The  meetings  of  the  representatives  of  the  civic 
bodies  at  the  City  Club  continued  for  a  period  of  six  months  or 
more. 

In  July,  1904,  the  gravity  of  the  situation  was  brought  to 
the  attention  of  Mayor  McClellan  by  a  sub-committee  of  the 
conference,  consisting  of  Mr.  Horace  E.  Deming  of  the  City 
Club,  Mr.  Charles  N.  Chadwick  of  the  Manufacturers  Associa- 
tion, Mr.  Robert  Van  Iderstine  of  the  Citizens  Union,  Mr.  Abner 
S.  Haight  of  the  Brooklyn  League,  Mr.  George  W.  Brush  of 
the  Flatbush  Taxpayers  Association,  Mr.  Henry  Evans  of  the 
New  York  Board  of  Fire  Underwriters,  Mr.  A.  B.  Hepburn  of 
the  Chamber  of  Commerce,  Mr.  Oscar  S.  Straus  of  the  Board  of 
Trade  and  Transportation,  and  Mr.  Lawrence  Veiller  of  the 
City  Club,  in  behalf  of  their  own  and  the  associated  organiza- 
tions. Mayor  McClellan's  interest  was  instantly  enlisted  and 
proved  a  powerful  factor  of  the  success  which  soon  followed. 

On  January  3,  1905,  with  the  backing  of  Mayor  McClellan, 
a  new  bill  for  the  creation  of  a  Board  of  Water  Supply  was 
introduced  in  the  Legislature.  Gov.  Higgins  did  not  at  first  re- 
gard the  measure  favorably,  as  he  was  an  advocate  of  the  devel- 
opment of  all  the  water  resources  of  the  State  under  State 
auspices.  On  February  16,  1905,  Mr.  Chadwick  went  to  Albany 
and  saw  the  Governor  by  appointment,  explained  the  situation, 
removed  the  Governor's  objections  and  secured  his  endorsement 
of  the  general  provisions  of  the  bill ;  and  from  that  time  forward, 
Gov.  Higgins  was  a  firm  advocate  of  the  measure. 

The  situation  in  the  Legislature,  however,  was  not  altogether 
promising,  and  a  special  effort  was  made  to  carry  conviction  at  a 


82  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

legislative  hearing  held  February  20,  1905.  Mayor  McClellan, 
ex-Mayor  Low,  Corporation  Counsel  Delaney,  and  a  committee 
of  representatives  of  the  joint  conference  of  civic  bodies  of 
which  Mr.  Horace  E.  Deming  was  Chairman,  went  to  Albany 
on  this  occasion.  In  addition  to  the  influence  of  this  notable 
delegation,  Governor  Higgins,  on  that  very  day,  threw  into  the 
scales  the  weight  of  a  special  message  to  the  Legislature  urging 
the  passage  of  the  bill. 

One  of  the  strongest  supporters  of  the  Mayor's  bill  at  this 
critical  time  was  the  Chamber  of  Commerce.  An  able  report 
made  to  that  organization  on  February  28,  1905,  by  Mr.  A.  B. 
Hepburn,  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Internal  Trade  and 
Improvements,  said,  among  other  things : 

"The  Mayor's  bill  .  .  .  contains  within  itself  everything" 
necessary  to  secure  with  the  utmost  possible  speed  the  additional 
water-supply  so  much  needed,  to  put  the  control  of  the  under- 
taking from  start  to  finish  in  the  hands  of  a  small  efficient,  non- 
political  business  body,  responsible  directly  to  the  city,  and  at 
the  same  time  establishes  rules  of  justice  and  fair  dealing  readily 
enforceable  in  the  courts. 

"The  securing  of  an  adequate  additional  water  supply  for 
the  city  will  cost  probably  $100,000,000  and  the  undertaking- 
demands  a  consistent  and  continuous  business  policy  that  will 
last  through  several  city  administrations.  This  means,  on  the 
one  hand,  that  the  city  should  control  the  spending  of  so  vast  an 
amount  of  the  money  of  the  citizens,  and,  on  the  other,  that  the 
control  of  so  stupendous  a  business  enterprise  should  be  removed 
absolutely  from  the  exigencies  of  political  parties  or  political 
partisanship." 

In  the  mutations  through  which  the  bill  passed  while  in  the 
committee  stage  in  the  Legislature,  the  loss  of  one  feature  caused 
much  concern.  One  of  the  primary  objects  which  had  been  kept 
in  mind  by  the  projectors  of  the  movement  from  its  very  inception 
in  1897  had  been  to  keep  on  a  high  civic  plane  and  out- 
side of  partisan  politics  the  administration  of  the  commis- 
sion which  was  to  build  the  aqueduct;  and  it  was  conceived 
that  if  an  impartial  selection  of  commissioners  could  be 
assured,  it  would  tend  to  remove  much  of  the  opposition 
to  the  bill.  A  provision  had  therefore  been  inserted  in 
the  Mayor's  bill  requiring  the  appointment  of  the  three  mem- 
bers of  the  proposed  Board  of  Water  Supply  from  lists  supplied 
by  the  Chamber  of  Commerce,  the  Board  of  Fire  Underwriters 


*The  Catskill   Aqueduct  83 

and  the  Manufacturers'  Association.  This  had  been  stricken  out, 
however,  as  unconstitutional,  but  the  deletion  was  compensated 
for  by  a  timely  and  important  public  declaration  by  Mayor  Mc- 
Clellan.  At  a  dinner  given  to  him  at  the  Hamilton  Club  in 
Brooklyn  on  April  6,  1905,  he  said : 

"I  promise  with  all  sincerity  that  is  in  me  that  if  the  bill 
is  amended  giving  to  the  Mayor  absolute  and  unqualified  power 
of  appointment  I  shall  immediately  on  the  enactment  of  the  bill 
call  upon  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  of  Xew  York,  the  Board  of 
Fire  Underwriters  and  the  Manufacturers'  Association  for  a  list 
of  three  names  each,  and  from  those  names  I  shall  appoint  Com- 
missioners, one, from  each  list;  and  should  any  vacancies  occur 
later  during  my  administration,  I  shall  fill  those  vacancies  in  the 
same  manner  as  I  shall  appoint  the  original  Commission.  I  want 
to  make  a  precedent  so  strong  and  establish  a  tradition  so  bind- 
ing that  none  of  my  successors  can  in  any  circumstances  violate 
this  tradition  or  precedent."" 

This  declaration  had  the  desired  effect.  The  bill  passed 
the  Assembly  April  11  and  in  the  last  days  of  the  session  it 
passed  the  Senate.  It  became  a  law  (chapter  724  of  the  laws  of 
1905  )  by  the  Governor's  signature  on  June  3,  1905. 

The  last  obstacle  in  the  .stony  path  of  the  movement  was 
removed  when,  on  November  7,  1905,  by  popular  vote,  the  con- 
stitution was  amended  by  inserting  in  section  10  of  article  VIII 
a  provision  excepting  from  the  constitutional  debt  limit  of  munici- 
palities "debts  incurred  by  the  City  of  Xew  York  after  the  1st 
day  of  January,  1904,  .  .  for  the  supply  of  water."  This 
amendment  went  into  effect  January  1,  1906,  but  was  retroactive 
to  January  1,  1904. 

Chapter  724  of  the  laws  of  1905  provided  that  the 
Mayor  should  appoint  three  Commissioners  to  be  called  the 
Board  of  Water  Supply.  An  unusual  feature  of  the  law, 
designed  to  secure  continuity  of  administration,  is  that  it 
prescribes  no  limit  to  the  term  of  office  of  the  Commis- 
sioners, who  are  not  to  be  removed  except  for  incompetency 
or  misconduct.  The  Board  chooses  its  own  President,  and  any 
two  of  them  constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business. 
This  Board  was  given  power  to  appoint  its  own  engineers,  sur- 
veyors, and  other  employees ;  and  was  charged  with  its  duty  of 
ascertaining  the  most  available  sources  of  an  additional  water 
supply  for  the  city  of  Xew  York,  its  recommendations  being  sub- 

yor    Gaynor   did    not    follow   this   precedent. 


84  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

ject  to  modification  by  the  Board  of  Estimate  and  Apportionment. 
Upon  the  approval  of  its  plans  and  after  certain  formalities  con- 
cerning the  filing  of  maps,  etc.,  the  Corporation  Counsel  was 
authorized  to  institute  condemnation  proceedings  for  the  acquisi- 
tion of  the  lands  needed  and  the  Board  of  Water  Supply  was 
authorized  to  build  the  aqueduct.  By  the  terms  of  the  act, 
the  City  of  Kingston  and  any  municipality  in  Westchester  county 
may  use  water  from  the  Catskill  aqueduct,  at  the  same  rate  of 
consumption  per  capita  as  New  York  city,  upon  payment  to  the 
city  of  New  York  at  the  same  rate  charged  to  New  York  city  con- 
sumers. 

On  June  5,  1905,  Mayor  McClellan  called  Mr.  Chadwick  to 
his  office  and  appointed  him  a  Commissioner  as  from  the  Manu- 
facturers' Association.  Not  then  having  the  nominations  of  the 
Chamber  of  Commerce  and  Board  of  Fire  Underwriters,  the 
Mayor  deferred  appointments  of  the  other  two  until  June  9,  on 
which  date  Mr.  Chadwick  was  formally  commissioned,  with  Mr. 
J.  Edward  Simmons  of  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  and  Mr. 
Charles  A.  Shaw  of  the  Board  of  Fire  Underwriters. 

The  full  list  of  the  Commissioners  who  for  twelve  years 
have  had  this  great  responsibility  of  evolving  a  definite  and  com- 
prehensive plan  of  water-supply  and  of  carrying  out  that  plan, 
is  as  follows,  the  Presidents  of  the  Board  being  indicated  by 
asterisks. 

Name  Appointed         Resigned 

*J.  Edward  Simmons  June    9,  1905  Jan.  28,  1908 

Charles  N.  Chadwick  June    9,  1905  Incumbent 

Charles  A.  Shaw  June    9,  1905  Jan.  12,  1911 

-John  A.  Bensel  Jan.  30,  1908  Dec.  31,  1910 

John  F.  Galvin  Jan.  23,  1911   Incumbent 

*  Charles  Strauss  Feb.     7,  1911  Incumbent 

The  Board  spent  two  months  in  considering  the  plan  and 
details  of  organization.  Before  the  engineers  could  be  appointed 
it  was  necessary  to  secure  their  exemption  from  civil  service  rules 
by  the  state  and  municipal  Civil  Service  Commissions. 

On  July  7,  1905,  Mr.  John  R.  Freeman  was  appointed  Con- 
sulting Engineer. 

Mr.  J.  Waldo  Smith  was  made  Chief  Engineer  and  assumed 
his  duties  August  1,  1905.  The  selection  of  Mr.  Smith  for  this 
responsible  position  was  extremely  fortunate  for  the  success  of 
the  undertaking.  He  had  begun  his  engineering  career  twenty- 


The  Catskill  Aqueduct  85 

seven  years  before,  at  the  age  of  17,  as  Chief  Engineer  of  his 
home  town  of  Lincoln,  Mass. ;  and  after  having  directed  works 
of  increasing  importance  in  that  and  other  states,  had  been  Chief 
Engineer  of  the  Aqueduct  Commissioners  of  New  York  from 
1903  to  1905,  and  had  charge  of  the  completion  of  the  new  Croton 
dam — the  largest  masonry  dam  in  the  world.  He  \vas  therefore 
thoroughly  familiar  with  the  water  problem  of  New  York  City. 
In  his  work  on  the  Catskill  aqueduct,  he  surrounded  himself  with 
very  able  men  as  executives  and  consultants,  and  directed  the 
work  with  such  skill  as  an  engineer  that  every  problem — and 
many  were  entirely  new — wras  solved  as  it  was  encountered.  In 
addition  to  his  professional  ability,  he  displayed  remarkable  tact. 
All  of  his  associates  became  very  fond  of  him  personally,  and 
their  esprit  de  corps  and  loyalty  contributed  greatly  to  the  suc- 
cess of  this  crowning  work  of  his  genius. 

Mr.  Charles  R.  Harrison  was  appointed  Deputy  Chief  Engi- 
neer and  was  later  succeeded  in  turn  by  Mr.  Merritt  H.  Smith  and 
Mr.  Alfred  D.  Flinn.  On  August  8,  1905,  Prof.  William  H'.  Burr 
and  Mr.  Frederic  P.  Stearns  were  appointed  Consulting  Engi- 
neers, and  some  years  later  Messrs.  Thaddeus  Merriman,  George 
G.  Honness,  Ralph  N.  Wheeler,  Frank  E.  WTinsor,  Robert 
Ridgway,  Carleton  E.  Davis  and  Walter  E.  Spear  were  appointed 
Department  Engineers. 

The  organization  at  the  present  time  is  as  follows : 

Commissioners 

Charles  Strauss,  President 
Charles  X    Chadwick  John  F.  Galvin 

Administration  and  Claims  Bureaus 

George    Featherstone,    Secretary  \Yilliam  S.  Haupt,  Chief  Clerk 

Ralph  T.  Stanton,  Asst.  Secretary        Walter  LeC.   Boyer,  Chief  of   Bu- 
Henry    C.    Buncke,    Auditor  reau  of  Claims. 

Engineering  Bureau. 

J.  \Yaldo  Smith,  Chief  Engineer 

Alfred     D.     Flinn,     Deputy     Chief       Thaddeus     Merriman,     Department 

Engr.  Engr. 

John  R.  Freeman,  Consulting  Engr.      Georore    G.     Honness,     Department 
William  H.  Burr,  Consulting  Engr.  Engr. 

Frederic     P.     Stearns,     Consulting      Ralph     X.     Wheeler.     Department 
Engr.  Encr. 

Walter  K.  Spear.  Department  Engr. 

Prof.  William  O.  Crosby,  formerly  of  the  Massachusetts  In- 
stitute of  Technology,  Prof.  Charles  P.  Berkey,  Ph.  D.,  of 
Columbia  University,  and  Prof.  James  F.  Kemp,  Sc.  D.,  LL.  D., 
of  Columbia  University,  were  the  expert-  on  geological  questions. 


86  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

The  Catskill  Mountains 

And  now,  to  quote  "The  Pilgrim's  Progress,"  "they  came  to 
the  Delectable  Mountains."  With  the  aid  of  previous  studies,  it 
did  not  take  the  Board  long  to  determine  the  general  question 
.  of  the  source  from  which  the  water  was  to  be  obtained,  and 
exactly  four  months  after  its  appointment,  the  Board  recom- 
mended to  the  Board  of  Estimate  and  Apportionment  a  plan  for 
taking  water  from  the  watersheds  in  the  Catskill  mountains  and 
foot-hills  tributary  to  the  Catskill,  Schoharie,  Esopus  and  Rond- 
out  creeks.  The  Ronclout  watershed,  embracing  an  area  of  131 
square  miles,  begins  about  seventy-five  miles  in  an  air  line  from 
miles  lies  next  to  the  northward;  the  Schoharie,  315  square  miles, 
next;  and  the  Catskill,  163  square  miles,  farthest  north,  its  north- 
ernmost boundary  being  about  125  miles  from  City  Hall. 

The  Catskill  mountains  in  which  these  watersheds  lie  are  an 
excellent  illustration  of  the  mechanical  agency  of  water  referred 
to  in  "the  opening  chapter.  In  the  Middle  and  Upper  Devonic 
periods  of  Palaeozoic  time,  perhaps  43,000,000  years  ago,*  when 
all  the  interior  of  New  York  state  and  much  of  the  continent 
was  submerged  under  the  sea,  the  sandstones  and  shales  of  the 
Catskills  were  formed  by  particles  and  fragments  of  ancient  rock 
washed  from  adjacent  heights  and  deposited  on  the  shore  and 
bottom  of  the  Devonian  sea.  In  the  lapse  of  these  millions  of 
years,  there  has  been  a  gradual  elevation  of  the  land  surface,— 
probably  several  alternate  elevations  and  depressions,  which,  as 
their  net  result,  lifted  the  ancient  seashore  and  sea-bottom  in  a 
great  plateau  several  thousand  feet  above  sea-level.  As  it 
emerged,  the  rains,  aided  somewhat  by  the  winds,  and  later  the 
glaciers,  began  to  wear  it  down  and  carved  it  ultimately  into  the 
shapes  which  we  now  call  mountains.  The  highest  of  these'. 
Hunter  mountain,  is  4025  feet  high,  although  it  was  once  much 
higher,  and  we  can  recognize  on  these  high  mountain-tops  the 
sands  of  the  ancient  sea-shore. 

Preliminary  Explorations 
Having  selected  the  general  source  of  the  water  supply,  it 


*  Geologists  do  not  reckon  geological  time  by  years,  but  by  periods,  characterized  by 
certain  forms  of  rocks  and  evidences  of  life.  The  above  rough  estimate  of  the  age 
of  the  Catskills  is  based  on  Lord  Kelvin's  estimate  of  100,000,000  years  of  elapsed 
time  since  the  Archaean,  and  Dana's  ratios  of  the  different  periods. 


88  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

was  necessary  to  determine  the  route  of  the  aqueduct,  the  loca- 
tion of  the  reservoirs,  and  the  general  character  of  the  works 
to  be  constructed.  The  work  was  divided  into  five  departments, 
namely,  the  Departments  of  Reservoirs,  North  Aqueduct  (from 
Ashokan  to  Peekskill),  South  Aqueduct  (from  Peekskill  to  New 
York  City),  City  Tunnel,  and  Headquarters,  in  charge  of  depart- 
ment engineers.  The  Chief  Engineer  over  the  whole  work  was 
Mr.  J.  Waldo  Smith. 

The  survey  covered  about  3000  miles  before  the  line  of  92 
miles  between  the  Ashokan  reservoir  and  the  city  line  was  de- 
termined. Additional  surveys  and  explorations  were  necessary 
to  locate  the  28  miles  of  tunnel  in  the  bed  rock  in  the  city  itself. 
It  was  decided  at  the  outset  not  to  build  the  aqueduct  anywhere 
on  structures  above  ground.  There  were  to  be  no  picturesque 
arcades  of  masonry  like  the  Roman  aqueducts  or  the  Harlem  river 
High  bridge.  Bridges  were  to  be  only  for  highway  purposes. 
The  aqueduct  itself  was  to  be  underground,  for  safety.  Rivers 
and  valleys,  therefore,  had  to  be  crossed  by  inverted  siphons 
passing  under  them,  and  as  the  pressure  of  water  at  low  depths 
is  enormous,  these  siphons  and  certain  other  parts  of  the  aque- 
duct had  to  be  built  in  solid  rock;  and  to  determine  the  subter- 
ranean rock  conditions,  hundreds  of  borings  were  made  with  a 
diamond  drill  ,  The  diamond  drill  used  was  a  hollow  cylindrical 
steep  pipe,  1^4  inches  in  diameter,  in  the  end  of  which  were  set 
seven  black  diamonds.  Each  diamond  was  valued  at  about  $100, 
making  the  diamonds  alone  worth  $700  in  each  drill.  In  the 
operation,  a  pipe  somewhat  larger  than  the  drill  was  first  driven 
down  through  the  top  soil  to  the  rock.  The  drill  was  then  let 
down  in  the  pipe,  lengths  being  added  to  the  drill  as  required, 
until  the  end  with  the  diamonds  rested  on  the  rock.  The  drill 
was  then  revolved  by  machinery,  cutting  down  through  the  rock 
somewhat  as  an  apple-corer  cuts  through  an  apple,  leaving  a 
core  of  rock  inside  the  drill.  Occasionally  the  drills  were  pulled 
up  and  the  rock  cores  removed,  labeled  and  carefully  saved  for 
study.  The  cores  came  out  in  fragments  varying  in  length  from 
a  few  inches  to  ten  feet,  and  their  aggregate  length  exceeded  25 
miles.  They  constitute  a  distinct  contribution  to  geological  science 
generally.  Every  phase  of  the  work  was  done  under  the  super- 
vision of  three  experts  in  geology,  namely,  Prof.  William  O. 
Crosby,  formerly  of  the  Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology,. 


The  Catskill  Aqueduct  89 

Prof.  Charles  P.  Berkey,  Ph.D.,  of  Columbia  L'nivcrsity,  and 
Prof.  James  F.  Kemp,  Sc.D.,  LL.  D.,  of  Columbia  Tniversity. 
The  information  furnished  by  the  studies  and  reports  of  these 
experts  concerning  the  rock-cores  enabled  the  engineers  to  know 
where  to  locate  the  rock  tunnels  in  rock  strong  enough  to  resist 
the  bursting  pressure  of  the  water,  how  deep  to  sink  their  shafts, 
etc. 

The  Ashokan  Reservoir 

Although  the  experimental  shaft  at  the  Storm  King  end  of 
the  siphon  under  the  Hudson  river  was  begun  February  23,  1907,. 
the  work  of  construction  dates  officially  from  June  20,  1907,  on 
which  clay  Mayor  George  B.  McClellan  turned  the  first  sod,  with 
appropriate  ceremonies,  near  Indian  creek  and  Garrison  road  in 
Phillipstown,  about  midway  between  Cold  Spring  and  Garrison. 

The  work  of  construction  proceeded  simultaneously  on  sev- 
eral different  parts  of  the  aqueduct ;' and  for  convenience  of 
description,  we  will  follow  the  geographical  rather  than  the 
chronological  order,  beginning  at  the  Catskills  and  proceeding" 
southward. 

Of  the  four  Catskill  watersheds  which  we  have  mentioned,  it 
was  decided  to  develop  first  the  Esopus  watershed,  capable  of 
supplying  250,000,000  gallons  of  water  a  day,  but  to  build  the 
aqueduct  with  a  capacity  of  500,000,000  gallons  a  day,  and  to 
develop  the  other  watersheds  as  needed.  The  Esopus  develop- 
ment has  been  completed  and  the  work  on  the  Schoharie  water- 
shed, which  is  expected  to  supply  the  second  250,000,000  gallons 
a  day,  is  now  in  progress. 

In  looking  around  for  a  suitable  place  for  the  storage  reser- 
voir of  the  Esopus  watershed,  a  site  was  found  about  eleven  miles 
west-northwest  of  the  City  of  Kingston  in  a  portion  of  the  Esopus 
valley  which  in  pre-glacial  times  was  probably  a  lake.  In  the 
glacial  period,  the  lower  side  of  this  lake  was  ground  down  by 
the  ice-sheet  and  the  lake  was  emptied  into  Esopus  creek.  By 
throwing  a  dam  across  the  Esopus  creek  at  Olive  Bridge  the 
engineers  found  they  could  re-create  this  ancient  lake  for  New 
York  City's  water-supply.  This  site,  embracing  about  15,000 
acres,  was  therefore  selected, — 10,000  acres  being  for  the  water 
area  and  5000  acres  for  the  marginal  reservation.  \Yithin  this 
area  were  nine  villages  with  private  houses,  boarding  houses, 
stores,  churches,  school  houses,  and  all  the  activities  of*  country 


90  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

life.  The  villages  were  West  Hurley,  Ashton,  Glenford,  Brown 
Station,  Olive  Bridge,  Brodhead,  Shokan,  West  Shokan  and 
Boiceville.  The  oldest  of  these  village  names,  Shokan,  is  an 
abbreviation  of  the  Indian  place-name  Ashokan,*  which  latter 
is  very  appropriately  preserved  in  the  name  of  the  reservoir 
built  on  this  site.  There  were  also  32  cemeteries,  containing  over 
2800  graves,  some  dating  back  over  200  years.  It  was  necessary 
to  acquire  all  this  land,  remove  the  villages  and  cemeteries,  re- 
locate 11  miles  of  the  Ulster  &  Delaware  railroad  track,  dis- 
continue 64  miles  of  old  highways,  build  40  miles  of  new  highways 
and  construct  10  highway  bridges,  to  make  way  for  the  reservoir. 
Some  of  the  property  involved  was  purchased  by  agreement;  but 
the  prices  asked  in  most  cases  were  so  exorbitant  that  most  of 
the  area  was  secured  by  condemnation  proceedings.  One  man, 
who  formerly  owned  a  boarding-house  which  was  condemned, 
complained  bitterly  after  he  had  spent  the  money  received  for  his 
house  and  had  neither  house  nor  money  left.  Being  asked  if  he 
had  not  been  compensated  for  it,  he  replied  in  the  affirmative, 
but  said  he  had  lost  his  business' and  he  wished  the  City  of  New 
York  had  never  come.  Most  of  the  former  inhabitants  went  to 
Kingston  and  the  others  scattered  to  the  four  winds. 

The  problem  of  the  cemeteries  was  a  serious  one  because  of 
the  sentiment  attaching  to  them.  The  owners  of  the  cemetery 
lots  were  paid  for  their  land  and  fences,  and  were  given  a  suitable 
allowance  for  the  expense  of  removing  the  bodies  and  for  new 
headstones ;  and  were  given  two  years  in  wrhich  to  vacate.  An 
evidence  of  the  transitoriness  of  human  life  or  the  indifference 
of  the  living  generation  to  the  memory  of  their  ancestors  is 
afforded  by  the  fact  that  the  relatives  of  many  of  those  buried  in 
the  cemeteries  had  either  died,  could  not  be  found,  or  took  no 
pains  to  transfer  the  bodies  in  the  cemeteries,  and  after  the  two- 
year  notice  had  expired  the  bodies  which  remained  were  removed 
by  contract  and  reverently  reinterred  in  other  cemeteries. 

The  ground  having  been  cleared,  the  engineers  built  across 
the  Esopus  creek  a  dam  which  created  a  reservoir  12  miles  long 
from  east  to  west  and  from  1  to  3  miles  wide,  covering  about 
10,000  acres  writh  water  which  at  its  deepest  place  near  the  dam 
is  190  feet  deep  but  which  on  the  average  is  50  feet  deep.  It  has 

*  In  the  Marbletown  records  of  1677  this  name  is  spelled  Shokaken.  In  "  Aboriginal 
Place  Names  of  New  York,"  published  by  the  New  York  State  Museum,  it  is  stated 
that  the  name  may  be  derived  from  "  chogan,"  meaning  "  black-bird,"  or,  preferably, 
from  "  sokan,"  meaning  "  to  cross  the  creek." 


The  Catskill  Aqueduct  QI 

a  shore  line  of  40  miles  and  a  storage  capacity  of  132,000,000,000 
gallons,  or  enough  water  to  cover  Manhattan  Island  30  feet  deep. 
This  dam,  built  of  cyclopean  masonry — that  is.  great  boulders  laid 
in  a  solid  bed  of  concrete — is  240  feet  high,  190  feet  thick  at  the 
base,  and  1,000  feet  long.  With  wings  on  each  side,  each  con- 
sisting of  a  core  wall  covered  by  an  embankment,  the  total  length 
of  the  dam  is  nearly  1  mile  from  hill  to  hill.  In  addition  to  this 
dam,  a  dike  about  5  miles  long  is  built  along  the  south  line  of 
the  reservoir. 

The  dike  has  a  concrete  core  going  down  to  rock,  and  is 
banked  with  earth  which  was  wet  and  rolled  as  every  six  inches 
of  height  was  added,  making  a  solid  mass  through  which  water 
cannot  pass.  This  dike  is  so  compact  that  a  cubic  foot  of  it 
weighs  150  pounds,  only  20  pounds  less  than  a  cubic  foot  of 
granite.  There  are  several  other  dikes  at  low  depressions  around 
the  reservoir  on  the  east  end,  while  on  the  north  and  west  are  the 
Catskill  peaks,  so  that  there  is  now  another  large  lake  where  its 
pre-glacial  predecessor  once  lay. 

At  the  extreme  east  end  of  the  reservoir,  there  is  a  concrete 
spillway  over  which  the  excess  water  escapes  and  flows  down 
through  a  valley  to  the  Esopus  creek. 

The  reservoir  is  divided  by  an  embankment  called  the  divid- 
ing weir  into  two  parts,  called  the  East  basin  and  the  ^rest  basin, 
from  either  of  which  the  water  can  be  allowed  to  flow  through 
the  gate-house  into  the  aqueduct.  Crossing  the  reservoir  on  the 
dividing  weir  is  the  Ashokan  bridge,  built  of  reinforced  con- 
crete. The  bridge  is  1,120  feet  long,  and  has  15  arches  of  67l/2 
foot  span. 

Another  notable  bridge  is  at  Travers  Hollow.  It  is  a  three- 
hinged  arch  bridge  of  200-foot  span. 

In  planning  this  reservoir,  very  careful  attention  was  given 
to  the  subject  of  the  purity  and  taste  of  the  water.  \Yhen  a 
reservoir  of  potable  water  is  built  on  ground  covered  with  veget- 
able mould,  it  is  usually  considered  desirable -to  remove  the  top 
soil  to  prevent  the  harmless  but  disagreeable  tastes  and  odors 
which  minute  vegetable  organisms  give  to  the  water  at  certain 
seasons.  Such  an  operation  at  Ashokan  reservoir  would  have 
cost  five  and  a  quarter  million  dollars.  But  as  the  bottom  of  the 
reservoir  was  principally  rock  and  peat,  the  engineers  decided 
that  they  could  attain  the  same  result  at  less  expense  by  building 


92  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

an  aeration  plant.  This  consists  of  a  small  reservoir,  500  feet 
long  and  250  feet  wide,  on  the  bottom  of  which  are  laid  water 
pipes  four  or  five  feet  apart.  At  intervals  of  five  or  six  feet  in 
each  pipe  are  nozzles,  through  which  the  water,  under  pressure, 
rises  into  the  air  in  jets  from  40  to  60  feet  high  and  falls  back 
into  the  reservoir  as  spray.  The  mixture  of  air  with  the  water 
in  this  process  causes  oxidation  of  the  vegetable  organisms  and 
removes  the  tastes  and  odors.  This  water  garden  forms  an 
attractive  feature  of  the  landcape  treatment  of  the  reservoir  site. 
Set  among  thousands  of  evergreen  and  deciduous  trees  and  sur- 
rounded and  crossed  by  forty  miles  of  wonderful  highways  and 
bridges,  Ashokan  reservoir  presents  a  scene  of  landscape  beauty 
which  is  pronounced  by  those  familiar  with  European  scenery 
to  rival  the  lakes  of  Switzerland. 

Humanitarian  Work 

As  the  work  on  the  various  parts  of  the  aqueduct  progressed, 
men  were  employed  in  increasing  numbers  until  as  many  as 
17,243  were  at  work  at  one  time  on  the  entire  line.  Comparing 
the  Catskill  aqueduct  with  the  Roman  aqueducts  again,  it  is  inter- 
esting to  contrast  the  treatment  of  these  workmen  with  those  of 
the  Romans.  The  Roman  workmen  were  slaves.  The  Catskill 
aqueduct  workmen  were  freemen  in  the  fullest  sense  of  the  word. 
Although  a  large  proportion  of  them  were  Italians,  the  padrone 
system  was  completely  eliminated  and  the  men  and  their  families 
were  so  well  cared  lor  that  there  was  not  a  single  labor  strike 
during  the  whole  ten  years  during  which  the  aqueduct  was  being 
built.  The  Board  of  Water  Supply  inserted  in  all  contracts  pro- 
visions requiring  stringent  sanitary  precautions  for  the  health  of 
employes,  local  communities  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  aqueduct 
and  people  using  water  from  the  drainage  areas  upon  which  the 
work  was  being  conducted.  Ample  supplies  of  wholesome  water 
and  good  food,  comfortable  housing  and  careful  sanitary  condi- 
tions for  the  employes,  were  also  insisted  upon,  and  employes 
violating  the  sanitary  regulations  were  discharged.  At  places 
where  particularly  large  numbers  of  workmen  were  concentrated, 
still  further  care  was  taken  for  the  welfare  of  the  workmen. 

As  an  illustration  may  be  cited  the  camp  at  Ashokan  reser- 
voir. Here  3,000  men  lived  with  their  families  near  the  work 
in  a  camp  built  by  the  contractors  under  the  supervision  of  the 


Bonticou  Grade  Tunnel,  17  feet  high,  13  feet  four  inches  wide,  typical  of  other 

grade  tunnel  work 


93 


94  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

Board  of  Water  Supply.  The  maximum  population  here  was 
4.500.  The  camp  was  laid  out  with  streets,  and  the  negroes, 
Italians  and  other  white  employes  were  separated  into  different 
quarters.  Good  dwellings,  generally  of  wood,  one-story  high, 
with  screens  on  all  doors  and  windows,  were  built  and  there  was 
a  special  sewage  disposal  plant.  Electric  lights,  telephones,  a 
savings  bank,  a  general  store,  a  bakery,  a  hospital,  police  and 
fire  protection,  a  post  office,  a  kindergarten  and  school  for  chil- 
dren, .churches,  and  a  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  also* 
provided  for  the  material  and  moral  welfare  of  the  workmen  and 
their  families.  There  were  smaller  camps  at  other  places,  not- 
ably at  Valhalla,  near  Kensico  reservoir,  but  the  same  humani- 
tarian spirit  pervaded  all. 

One  interesting  branch  of  the  work  in  these  camps  was  the 
camp-schools  for  grown  men  and  kindergartens  for  children, 
which  were  in  addition  to  the  regular  public  schools  for  children, 
and  which  w7ere  supported  by  private  philanthropy.  Commis- 
sioner Charles  N.  Chadwick  started  this  movement  by  an  address 
at  Lake  Mohonk  on  August  26,  1908,  after  which  Mr.  Albert' 
Smiley  took  up  a  collection.  This  was  supplemented  by  con- 
tributions by  the  Commissioners  of  the  Board  of  Water  Supply, 
the  engineers,  Mayor  McClellan,  and  others.  Valuable  co-opera- 
tion was  given  by  the  Italian  Government,  the  Society  for  Italian 
Immigrants,  the  American  Civic  League,  and  similar  organiza- 
tions. Miss  Anne  Morgan  was  one  of  several  prominent  women 
who  supported  the  movement.  Other  women  who  lent  prac- 
tical aid,  as  supervisors  or  teachers,  were  Dr.  Jane  E.  Robbins, 
Miss  Sarah  W.  Moore,  Miss  Anne  Young,  Miss  Kennedy  and 
Mrs.  A.  E.  Talbot.  Besides  the  classes  of  instruction  these 
schools  provided  medical  attendance,  gymnasium  classes,  mov- 
ing pictures,  dances,  foreign  and  American  newspapers,  libraries, 
story-telling  for  children,  old-fashioned  games  (but  not  cards), 
etc.,  for  the  welfare  and  happiness  of  the  camp  communities,  all 
free  of  charge. 

The  result  of  all  these  wise  provisions  for  adults  and  chil- 
dren was  reflected  in  both  the  health  and  general  morale  of 
employes  and  their  families.  The  death  rate  among  them,  exclu- 
sive of  accidents,  was  only  3.5  per  thousand. 

The  reason  for  the  camp  schools  for  men  was  that  under 
the  restrictions  of  the  8-hour  law,  to  secure  as  nearly  as  possible* 


The  Catskill  Aqueduct  95 

100  per  cent,  of  efficiency,  it  was  necessary  to  take  into  consid- 
eration not  only  physical  conditions  but  also  some  field  of  mental 
activity  and  employment  that  would  reasonably  occupy  the  laborer 
when  he  was  not  at  work.  This  suggested  what  are  called  camp 
schools  for  grown  men.  As  there  was  no  provision  under  the 
act  for  the  support  and  maintenance 'of  such  schools,  it  became 
necessary  to  raise  the  money  from  outside  sources.  The  work- 
men in  these  schools  were  taught  to  read  and  write  the  English 
language,  and  incidentally  were  given  some  knowledge  of  the 
laws  and  institutions  of  the  country.  This  work  of  pointing  out 
to  the  men  of  foreign  extraction  the  advantages  of  becoming 
good  and  law-abiding  citizens  was  aimed  at  the  root  of  the  immi- 
gration problem.  It  was  also  believed  that  if  the  men's  time  were 
properly  employed  during  their  recreation  hours  they  would  pay 
closer  attention  to  their  work  during  their  eight  hours  of  labor. 
Through  the  medium  of  a  common  language,  a  prolific  source  of 
misunderstanding  between  employer  and  employees  was  done 
away  with.  All  these  things  contributed  to  the  completion  of  the 
work  without  a  strike.  The  situation  in  connection  with  the 
administration,  engineering,  construction  and  other  problems  may 
be  summarized  in  the  one  statement  that  the  human  side  of  the 
workmen  was  considered. 

The  Five  Types  of  Aqueduct  Construction 

The  aqueduct  which  conveys  the  water  from  the  Ashokan. 
reservoir  to  the  City  of  New  York  is  of  five  different  types  of 
construction,  namely,  cut-and-cover,  grade  tunnel,  pressure  tun- 
nel, steel  pipe  siphon  and  flexible- jointed  pipe  siphon — the  latter 
being  used  only  at  one  place,  namely,  across  the  Narrows  of  Xew 
York  harbor. 

The  term  "cut-and-cover"  is  used  to  describe  that  type  of 
aqueduct  which  is  built  by  cutting  a  trench  in  the  surface  of  the 
ground,  laying  the  conduit  in  the  trench,  and  covering  it  with 
earth.  In  section  it  is  horse-shoe  shaped  with  a  slightly  curved 
bottom  called  the  "invert"'  and  a  high  arched  top.  The  interior 
diameter  is  17  feet  6  inches  wide  and  17  feet  high.  The  conduit 
is  made  of  concrete,  varying  in  thickness  from  one  foot  at  the 
top  and  bottom  to  five  feet  at  the  bottom  of  the  arch.  This  is 
the  least  difficult  and  least  expensive  type,  and  has  been  used 
wherever  the  elevation  and  nature  of  the  land  permitted,  where 


96  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

the  grades  are  comparatively  moderate,  and  therefore  where  the 
bursting  pressure  of  the  water  is  not  great.  The  gradient  of 
the  cut-and-cover  tunnel  is  about  one  foot  to  the  mile.  An  aggre- 
gate of  fifty-five  miles  of  the  aqueduct  is  of  this  type.  Most  of 
the  old  aqueducts  which  supplied  the  City  of  Rome  were  built 
by  the  cut-and-cover  metho'd,  although  the  Roman  conduits  were 
made  generally  of  stone  or  brick,  lined  with  concrete. 

Grade  tunnels  were  driven  through  hills  and  mountains 
where  it  would  have  been  impracticable  or  uneconomical  to  cir- 
cumvent them  by  the  cut-and-cover  method.  They  followed  the 
general  grade  of  the  aqueduct,  but  had  a  gradient  of  about  two 
feet  to  the  mile.  They  are  also  horse-shoe  shaped,  and  the  same 
height  as  the  cut-and-cover  type,  namely,  17  feet,  but  are  nar- 
rower, being  only  13  feet  4  inches  wide.  In  explanation  of  the 
smaller  diameter  of  the  grade  tunnel,  and.  the  still  smaller  diam- 
eter of  the  pressure  tunnel  mentioned  hereafter,  it  may  be  ex- 
plained for  the  benefit  of  those  not  familiar  with  hydraulics, 
that  by  increasing  the  "head"  or  the  rate  of  descent,  the  same 
amount  of  water  can  pass  through  a  conduit  of  smaller  size  in 
the  same  time  that  it  would  take  to  pass  through  the  larger.  By 
a  comparison  of  cost  between  "head"  and  excavation,  it  was 
found  to  be  cheaper  at  certain  places  to  increase  the  gradient 
and  to  decrease  the  calibre  of  the  tunnel  than  to  continue  the 
lesser  gradient  and  larger  diameter.  The  grade  tunnels  are  built 
of  concrete,  which  solidly  fills  all  the  space  between  the  inner 
surface  of  the  conduit  and  the  rock  through  which  the  tunnels 
are  blasted.  There  are  24  of  these  grade  tunnels,  aggregating 
14  miles  in  length.  (See  illustration.) 

Pressure  tunnels  were  built  where  it  was  necessary  to  pass 
under  broad  valleys  and  deep  rivers,  and  in  the  City  of  New 
York,  and  where  suitable  rock  could  be  found  through  which  to 
build  them.  It  may  be  stated  in  passing  that  all  rock  is  not 
suitable  rock  for  an  aqueduct  tunnel  for  it  is  impracticable  to 
construct  through  disintegrated  and  badly  fissured  rock  a  tunnel 
which  has  to  stand  great  bursting  pressure  due  to  the  depth  of 
the  .tunnel  below  the  initial  level  of  the  water.  The  pressure  tun- 
nels are  circular  in  form,  built  of  concrete  and  are  generally  14^2 
feet  in  diameter  in  those  portions  north  of  New  York  City.  The 
city  tunnel  begins  with  a  diameter  of  15  feet  which  is  gradually 
reduced  as  it  goes  southward  to  11  feet.  There  are  seven  pres- 


The  Catskill  Aqueduct  97 

sure  tunnels  aggregating  17  miles  in  length  north  of  the  city, 
and  the  city  tunnel  is  18  miles  long,  being  the  longest  tunnel  in 
the  world  for  carrying  water  under  pressure  or  for  any  other 
purpose.  The  normal  gradient  of  the  pressure  tunnels  is  about 
3  feet  to  the  mile.  (See  illustration.) 

Wonderful  skill  was  shown  by  the  aqueduct  builders  in 
constructing  the  grade  and  pressure  tunnels.  The  marvelous 
precision  of  the  engineers  in  the  single  matter  of  surveying  may 
be  illustrated  by  a  comparison  with  the  old  Romans.  When  the 
Aqua  Claudia  was  being  built  in  the  first  century,  the  Romans 
decided  to  drive  a  tunnel  three  miles  long  through  Mount  Affliano. 
Their  chief  engineer  set  the  line  for  the  tunnel  and  put  two 
parties  of  men  at  work,  one  at  each  end,  to  tunnel  toward  each 
other,  in  the  expectation  of  meeting  in  the  middle  of  the  moun- 
tain. While  they  were  thus  at  work,  the  chief  engineer  was  cap- 
tured by  bandits  and  held  a  prisoner  for  a  long  time.  When  he 
was  released  and  went  to  see  how  the  tunnel  was  progressing, 
he  found  that  the  two  working  parties  had  passed  each  other  and 
did  not  know  it.  He  said  that  if  he  had  not  discovered  their 
error  in  time  they  would  have  had  two  tunnels  instead  of  one. 
In  contrast  with  this  experience  may  be  mentioned  two  typical 
examples  of  Catskill  aqueduct  engineering.  In  crossing  the  Hud- 
son river  at  Storm  King,  two  parties  of  workmen  on  opposite 
sides  of  the  river,  over  three-fifths  of  a  mile  apart,  bored  verti- 
cally down  to  a  depth  of  1,114  feet  below  sea-level,  then  started 
toward  each  other,  and  met  under  midstream  with  the  variation 
of  not  more  than  half  an  inch.  In  building  the  Bonticou  grade 
tunnel  through  the  mountain  between  the  Rondout  and  Walkill 
creeks  on  the  west  side  of  the  Hudson,  two  parties  started  from 
opposite  directions  and  met  under  Bonticou  mountain  with  equal 
precision,  each  having  worked  a  distance  of  about  3,500  feet,  or 
a  total  distance  of  over  a  mile  and  a  quarter.  Such  feats, 
repeated  many  times,  were  not  so  difficult  as  overcoming  the  many 
new  and  unforeseen  problems  presented  by  unexpected  geological 
conditions,  illustrations  of  which  will  be  mentioned  hereafter. 

The  fourth  principal  type  of  construction  is  the  steel-pipe 
siphon.  This  form  of  construction  is  used  to  pass  under  valleys 
where  the  rock  is  not  sound  and  where  for  other  reasons  pres- 
ure  tunnels  would  be  impracticable.  Each  siphon  consists  of 
three  cylindrical  steel  pipes  from  9  feet  to  11  feet  in  diameter 


98  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

made  of  plates  varying  from  7/16  to  24  of  an  inch  thick  riveted 
together.  They  are  lined  with  two  inches  of  cement  mortar  and 
are  enveloped  with  concrete.  Only  one  of  the  three  pipes  of 
each  siphon  has  been  laid  thus  far,  the  others  not  being  needed 
at  present.  There  are  14  steel-pipe  siphons,  aggregating  6  miles 
in  length.  They  are  not  true  siphons  but  are  so-called  because 
of  their  resemblance  in  shape  to  an  inverted  siphon.  The  Romans 
knew  the  principle  of  the  inverted  siphon,  but,  not  having  cast 
iron  and  steel,  were  unable  to  employ  it  on  their  main  aqueducts. 
The  best  they  could  do  was  to  use  small  lead  pipes  as  inverted 
siphons  in  their  distribution  system. 

The  fifth  type  of  Catskill  aqueduct  construction  is  the  flexible 
pipe-line  across  the  Narrows  of  New  York  harbor,  an  ingenious 
invention  which  will  be  more  fully  described  hereafter.  It  is 
nearly  two  miles  long. 

About  8  miles  of  by-pass  and  miscellaneous  construction 
brings  the  total  length  of  the  aqueduct  at  present  up  to  about 
120  miles.  About  18  miles  more  of  tunnel  will  be  built  north 
of  Ashokan  reservoir  under  the  Shandaken  mountains  to  bring 
the  Schoharie  water  into  the  Ashokan  reservoir. 

From  Ashokan  Reservoir  to  Hudson  River 

When  the  Ashokan  reservoir  is  full,  the  surface  of  the  water 
is  590  feet'  above  tide  level.  Through  the  gate  chamber  at  the 
dividing  weir  of  the  reservoir  the  water  is  let  down  to  the  aque- 
duct proper  which  begins  at  the  level  of  492  feet.  The  first  mile 
of  aqueduct  constituting  the  "headworks,"  is  mostly  of  the  cut- 
and-cover  form  of  construction.  The  general  direction  of  this 
and  succeeding  portions,  until  otherwise  stated,  is  southeastward. 

For  about  two-fifths  of  a  mile  from  the  headworks,  the  aque- 
duct drops  down  about  120  feet  in  order  to  pass  under  Esopus 
creek  by  means  of  an  inverted  siphon,  coming  up  again  to  about 
the  same  level  of  492  feet  on  the  other  side  of  the  creek.  Three- 
fifths  of  a  mile  of  cut-and-cover  brings  it  to  Tongore  creek,  under 
which  it  passes  by  an  inverted  syphon  about  80  feet  deep.  It  then 
runs  4^  miles,  by  cut-and-cover,  through  the  Esopus  valley  to 
Peak  Mountain,  a  formation  of  Hamilton  shale,  through  which 
it  passes  by  means  of  grade  tunnel  about  five-eighths  of  a  mile 
long.  A  mile  and  a  half  more  of  cut-and-cover  brings  it  to  the 
great  Rondout  siphon. 


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ioo  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

The  Rondout  siphon  is  not  a  steel  pipe  siphon  but  a  pressure 
tunnel,  14j/2  feet  in  diameter.  It  is  4l/2  miles  long  between  the 
down-take  and  up-take  shafts,  and  descends  from  an  elevation  of 
478  feet  to  a  point  249  feet  below  sea-level — a  drop  of  727  feet — 
in  order  to  pass  under  the  Rondout  creek  and  valley.  Between 
the  down-take  and  up-take  shafts,  six  construction  shafts  were 
sunk  in  order  that,  construction  parties  might  tunnel  in  both 
directions  and  thus  expedite  the  work.  At  shaft  4  a  peculiar 
condition  was  met.  Here  the  workmen  encountered  fissures 
through  which  2,000  gallons  of  water  a  minute  leaked  into  the 
tunnel  and  greatly  inconvenienced  the  work.  The  trouble  was 
aggravated  by  a  sulphuric  condition  which  gave  a  bad  taste  to 
the  water  and  so  permeated  the.  air  that  it  irritated  the  eyes  and 
lungs.  The  problem  was  ingeniously  solved  by  boring  around 
the  crevices  and  filling  them  with  concrete.  The  excavation  of 
this  tunnel  also  revealed  violent  folding  of  the  rock  strata.  The 
intake  shaft  passes  down  through  Hamilton  shale  to  Marcellus 
shale,  then  the  tunnel  passes  horizontally  through  Marcellus  shale. 
Binnewater  sandstone,  High  Falls  shale,  Shawangunk  grit,  Hud- 
son river  shale,  Shawangunk  grit  again,  and  again  through  Hud- 
son river  shale.  The  Shawangunk  grit  was  particularly  unfavor- 
able for  tunnel  construction,  and  necessitated  going  down  to 
greater  depth  in  order  to  avoid  it  as  far  as  possible.  Twelve  dif- 
ferent kinds  of  rock  were  found.  Some  was  limestone  and  in 
many  cases  the  drills  penetrated  limestone  caves  of  unknown 
depth  and  were  lost.  Rock  weakness  was  developed  in  one  local- 
ity in  the  Rondout  tunnel,  and  it  was  counteracted  by  reinforcing 
the  lining  for  a  short  distance  with  an  interlining  made  up  of 
steel  channel  rings,  welded  together  and  lined  with  concrete. 

The  uptake  of  the  Rondout  siphon  comes  up  through  Hudson 
shale  to  an  elevation  of  about  463  feet,  and  then  passes  through 
Bontecou  mountain,  of  the  same  formation,  in  a  grade  tunnel 
about  \l/\.  miles  long.  A  stretch  of  about  3^1  miles  of  cut-and- 
cover  work  brings  the  aqueduct  to  the  Walkill  siphon. 

The  VVallkill  siphon  carries  the  aqueduct  under  the  Wallkill 
creek  and  valley  by  means  of  a  pressure  tunnel,  14^  feet  in  diam- 
eter and  4^/2  miles  long.  In  this  performance  it  drops  577  feet  to 
a  depth  of  90  feet  below  sea-level,  and  comes  up  again  to  about 
440  feet  above  tide  water. 

Cut-and-cover  work  for  a  distance  of  fifteen  miles  almost 


The  Catskill  Aqu^d  101 

due  southward  brings  it  to  a  point  between  Washington  Square 
and  Little  Britain  in  the  town  of  New  Windsor,  where  it  passes 
under  a  stream  with  a  siphon  about  3/5  of  a  mile  long:  and  then 
continues  for  ll/2  miles  with  cut-and-cover  to  the  Moodna  pres- 
sure tunnel.  The  level  here,  at  a  distance  of  40  miles  from  Asho- 
kan,  is  418  feet. 

At  the  edge  of  the  Moodna  valley  a  vertical  down-take  shaft 
586  feet  deep  and  an  additional  drop  of  about  50  feet  in  grade 
takes  the  aqueduct  down  to  a  depth  of  218  feet  below  sea-level. 
In  the  five  miles  distance  under  the  valley  and  creek  and  under 
Storm  King  Mountain,  it  drops  ten  feet  more  and  arrives  at  the 
Hudson  river  at  a  depth  of  228  feet  below  sea-level. 

The  Hudson  River  Crossing 

The  crossing  of  the  Hudson  river  was  a  brilliant  achieve- 
ment, to  appreciate  which  one  must  understand  something  of  the 
geological  conditions  encountered. 

The  geological  history  of  the  Hudson  valley  through  the 
Highlands  is  different  from  that  of  its  other  sections.  The  High- 
lands are  primitive  rocks  which  were  among  the  first  to  be  lifted 
up  out  of  the  primeval  flood  at  the  beginning  of  geological  time. 
They  are  part  of  the  "Appalachian  protaxis,"  so-called,  a  great 
mountain  ridge  extending  from  Georgia  on  the  southwest  to 
Canada  on  the  northeast  which,  with  the  Adirondack  mountains 
of  New  York  and  the  Laurentian  mountains  of  Canada,  were 
elevated  above  the  sea  when  almost  all  the  rest,  of  the  continent 
was  yet  submerged.  They  are  more  than  sixty  millions  of  years 
older  than  the  Catskills.*  In  the  alternate  rise  and  fall  of  the 
land  through  long  periods  of  time,  deep  valleys  were  cut  across 
this  protaxis,  one  of  them  being  the  pass  through  which  the  Hud- 
son river  now  flows.  After  this  pass  was  worn  through  the  rocks, 
the  land  became  depressed  until  the  bottom  of  the  rock  gorge, 
which  was  once  approximately  at  tide  level,  reached  a  point  eight 
or  nine  hundred  feet  below  the  level  of  the  sea,  and  became 
largely  filled  up  with  sand,  gravel  and  boulders  brought  down 
by  water  and  glaciers.  Such  is  the  condition  between  Storm  King 
mountain  on  the  west  side  of  the  Hudson  and  Breakneck  moun- 
tain on  the  east  side  where  the  engineers  decided  to  bring  the 
aqueduct  across.  But  it  had  to  be  built  in  solid  rock,  and  nobody 

*  See  note  on  page  86  preceding. 


IO2  •  i  he.  Catskill  Aqueduct 

at  that  time  knew  exactly  how  deep  the  rock  gorge  was  at  this 
point.     (See  illustration.) 

To  solve  this  riddle,  a  series  of  explorations  and  borings 
was  made.  Scows  were  placed  in  the  river  between  the  two 
shores  and  test  pipes  sunk  through  the  water  and  the  drift  which 
formed  the  river  bottom.  At  a  distance  of  about  800  feet  from 
each  shore',  rock  was  found  at  a  depth  of  about  600  feet,  but 
beyond  these  points  toward  the  middle  of  the  river,  no  rock  was 
found.  From  the  scow  in  the  middle  of  the  river,  a  boring  750 
feet  deep  met  with  no  better  success,  nothing  but  boulders,  gravel 
and  sand  being  encountered.  It  then  became  necessary  to  attack 
the  problem  from  a  new  point  of  view.  Shafts  were  sunk  to  a 
depth  of  300  feet  on  each  shore  near  the  river,  a  working  cham- 
ber was  hollowed  out  at  the  bottom  of  each,  and  from  each  a 
diamond  drill  was  started  to  work  toward  the  middle  of  the  river 
-at  a  downward  angle  of  about  45°  with  the  horizon.  These  two 
borings,  one  2,000  feet  long  and  the  other  1,831  feet  long,  met  in 
solid  rock  1,500  feet  below  the  surface  of  the  river.  As  the  bor- 
ing from  the  scow  in  midstream  had  found  no  rock  at  a  depth 
of  750  feet,  and  as  the  diagonal  borings  had  shown  it  to  exist  at. 
a  depth  of  1,500,  it  was  thus  ascertained  that  the  bottom  of  the 
gorge  was  somewhere  between  those  depths ;  but  it  was  necessary 
to  know  more  than  this  in  order  to  ensure  building  the  tunnel 
far  enough  below  the  bottom  of  the  gorge  to  enable  it  safely  to 
resist  the  great  bursting  pressure  of  the  water  in  the  aqueduct 
at  that  depth.  Therefore,  another  pair  of  diagonal  borings  at  a 
lesser  angle  was  made  and  met  in  rock  950  feet  below  the  surface 
of  the  river.  The  engineers  therefore  knew  that  they  had  a 
zone  of  rock  at  least  550  feet  thick  through  which  to  bore  their 
tunnel,  and  they  decided  to  locate  it  1,114  feet  deep. 

As  an  illustration  of  the  cleverness  of  the  engineers  in  mak- 
ing these  diagonal  borings,  we  may  mention  the  device  which 
they  employed  to  ascertain  the  position  of  their  drills.  The  drills 
showed  a  curious  tendency  to  turn  upward  instead  of  following 
a  straight  line  at  the  initial  angle,  and  it  is  evident  that  unless  the 
engineers  knew  the  amount  of  departure  or  corrected  the  deflec- 
tion they  could  not  know  the  vertical  depth  of  their  drills.  They 
therefore  inserted  in  the  drill  a  small  bottle  partly  filled  with 
hydrofluoric  acid,  which  etches  glass.  When  this  was  let  down  in 
the  boring  and  allowed  to. remain  long  enough  to  etch  the  bottle, 


The  Catskill  Aqueduct  103 

the  angle  'net ween  the  horizontal  etched  line  and  the  axis  of  the 
bottle  enabled  the  engineers  to  calculate  the  true  position  of  the 
drill  and  make  corrections  accordingly. 

Still  another  question  had  to  he  answered  before  it  was  safe 
to  begin  the  tunnel  across  the  river.  From  the  data  furnished 
by  the  borings  and  from  deductions  therefrom,  Professor  Crosby 
concluded  that  the  profile  of  the  cross-section  of  the  rock  gorge 
was  L'-shaped  on  the  east  side  and  Y-shaped  on  the  west  side, 
with  concave  scarfs  facing  the  southward,  and  it  was  necessary 
to  ascertain  if  such  scarfs  existed,  lest  the  tunnel  should  emerge 
from  the  rock  into  a  concavity  filled  with  glacial  drift.  Hori- 
zontal borings  were  therefore  made  from  the  shafts,  with  reassur- 
ing results.  The  selected  route  was  considered  safe  and  the 
contracts  for  construction  were  let. 

As  previously  stated,  the  Moodna  pressure  tunnel  reached 
the  Hudson  under  Storm  King  mountain  at  a  depth  of  228  feet 
below  sea-level.  To  construct  the  pressure  tunnel  under  the 
Hudson,  it  was  necessary  to  send  an  access  shaft  down  from  the 
surface  of  the  ground  to  the  pressure  tunnel,  and  to  carry  the 
latter  down  886  feet  farther  to  a  point  1,114  feet  below  sea-level 
before  the  actual  crossing  could  be  begun.  The  first  access  shaft 
was  found  to  be  too  near  the  side  of  the  mountain  to  enable  it 
to  resist  the  bursting  pressure  of  the  water  which  was  to  run  in 
it,  and  a  second  shaft  was  sunk  farther  back  from  the  river. 

This  siphon  under  the  Hudson  river  is  of  the  pressure  tunnel 
type,  cylindrical  in  section,  \4l/2  feet  in  diameter,  and  built  of 
concrete  fitting  compactly  against  the  inside  of  a  tunnel  excavated 
through  solid  granite  rock.  The  aqueduct  comes  up  on  the  east 
side  of  the  river  to  a  height  of  395  feet  above  sea-level,  making 
the  total  depth  of  the  up-take  over  1,500  feet.  The  access  shaft 
on  the  west  side  has  been  sealed  with  concrete,  but  the  up-take 
shaft  on  the  east  side  is  to  serve  as  the  drainage  and  access  shaft 
for  the  whole  Moodna-Hudson-Breakneck  pressure  tunnel,  and  is 
closed  with  a  removable  steel  cap,  weighing  50  tons,  bolted  down 
with  34  bolts  50  feet  long  and  2l/2  inches  in  diameter,  to  resist 
the  terrific  pressure  of  the  water. 

The  middle  of  the  Hudson  river  siphon  is  45  miles  from 
Ashokan  reservoir. 

From  Hudson  River  to  Kensico  Reservoir 
From    the    up-take    at    Breakneck    mountain,    the    aqueduct 


iO4  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

starts  oft"  again  in  a  southeasterly  direction,  with  a  tunnel  of  1/5 
of  a  mile  through  the  mountain,  half  a  mile  of  cut-and-cover, 
a  mile  tunnel  through  Bull  hill  (granitic  gneiss)  and  Y\  of  a  mile 
of  steel-pipe  siphon  under  Foundry  brook. 

It  then  turns  in  a  more  southerly  direction  and  for  about  4 
miles  is  cut-and-cover,  with  one  short  tunnel  and  one  short 
siphon. 

About  a  mile  and  a  half  east  of  Garrison  and  a  short  dis- 
tance south  of  Philipse  brook,  a  grade  tunnel  nearly  2T/s  miles 
long  carries  it  through  granitic  gneiss. 

Continuing  in  a  generally  south-southeasterly  direction,  in 
the  next  3*/2  miles  it  has  first  a  stretch  of  cut-and-cover,  then 
passes  under  Sprout  brook  by  siphon,  through  Cat  hill  by  tunnel, 
along  the  surface  by  cut-and-cover  to  Peekskill  creek,  and  then 
under  Peekskill  creek  by  steel  pipe  siphon.  In  passing  under  the 
creek,  a  distance  of  6,620  feet,  the  aqueduct  drops  from  a  level  of 
about  380  feet  to  about  50  feet  above  sea-level,  rising  again  to 
370  feet  on  the  south  side  of  the  valley.  At  present  only  one  of 
the  three  pipes  of  this  siphon  has  been  laid.  It  is  9  feet  2  inches 
in  diameter  and  is  sufficient  for  the  present  supply  of  250,000,000 
gallons  a  day.  When  the  Schoharie  supplement  of  250,000,000 
gallons  a  day  more  is  added,  the  other  two  pipes  of  this  and  the 
other  steel  pipe  siphons  will  be  laid.  The  length  of  the  aqueduct 
from  Ashokan  to  Peekskill  creek  is  56  miles. 

The  route  is  now  generally  south-southeast  for  about  2  miles, 
east-southeast  2  miles,  and  southeast  4^4  miles ;  and  at  a  dis- 
tance of  64%  miles  from  Ashokan  it  passes  under  Croton  lake 
about  a  mile  above  the  new  Croton  dam.  These  8%  miles  are 
mostly  cut-and-cover,  although  there  is  a  grade  tunnel  nearly  a 
mile  and  a  quarter  long  through  a  mountain  of  schist  near  Hunter 
brook,  a  shorter  tunnel  and  two  short  siphons  on  the  way. 

The  Croton  lake  siphon  is  a  pressure  tunnel  which  passes 
under  the  lake  at  an  elevation  of  150  feet  below  tide  level  and 
comes  up  to  354  feet  above  datum. 

It  is  ten  miles  from  the  Croton  siphon  to  Kensico  reser- 
voir. In  this  interval  there  are  7  tunnels,  all  through  schist, 
aggregating  about  3%  miles,  and  the  rest  is  cut-and-cover. 

Kensico  Reservoir 

The  aqueduct  reaches  Kensico  reservoir  at  an  elevation  of 


West  Side  of  River 


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io6  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

339  feet  but  the  flow-line  of  the  reservoir  is  355  feet  high.  This 
reservoir  is  formed  by  a  dam  across  the  Bronx  river  about  three 
miles  north  of  White  Plains,  and  is  about  one-fourth  the  size 
of  the  Ashokan  reservoir.  With  its  marginal  strip,  the  reserva- 
tion comprises  4,500  acres  or  about  7  square  miles,  one  half  of 
which  is  covered  with  water.  The  reservoir  is  4  miles  long,  from 
1  to  3  miles  wide,  has  40  miles  of  shore  line,  and  has  a  total 
capacity  of  38,000,000,000  gallons.  The  main  object  of  this  reser- 
voir is  to  store  about  50  days'  water  supply  for  the  city  against 
accident.  The  flow  line  of  the  reservoir  includes  1,300  acres 
acquired  by  the  City  from  the  old  Kensico  reservoir  and  its  aux- 
iliary Rye  ponds,  and  for  the  enlarged  project  3,200  acres  more 
were  purchased.  There  were  no  villages  within  this  area  to  be 
obliterated,  and  a  population  of  only  500  persons  had  to  be 
removed.  Only  a  few  burial  places  were  disturbed.'  Fourteen 
miles  of  old  highways  were  discontinued  and  9  miles  of  new 
highways,  including  4  bridges,  were  built.  The  most  important 
of  the  new  highways  is  the  county  road  leading  from  White 
Plains  to  Mount  Kisco.  This  crosses  an  arm  of  the  reservoir 
on  a  reinforced  concrete  arch  bridge  of  five  spans  of  about  127 
feet  each,  known  as  the  Rye  Outlet  bridge.  Another  highway 
runs  along  the  top  of  the  dam,  approaching  from  the  east  over 
a  masonry  bridge  of  three  arches,  which  crosses  the  waste  chan- 
nel of  the  reservoir. 

The  dam  itself  is  an  impressive  piece  of  masonry.  It  is 
located  about  400  feet  up-stream  from  the  old  dam.  It  is  1.825 
feet  long,  has  a  maximum  height  of  307  feet,  is  235  feet  thick 
at  the  base,  and  28  feet  wide  on  the  top.  It  is  built  of  cyclopean 
concrete.  The  up-stream  face  is  of  concrete  blocks.  The  pro- 
file of  the  down-stream  face  is  a  true  hyperbola.  The  con- 
cealed portion  of  the  down-stream  face  below  the  final  grading 
was  molded  against  concrete  forms,  while  the  exposed  portion 
above  ground  consists  of  massive  cut  blocks  ©f  granite,  ranging 
from  pink  Scotch  to  grey  New  England,  set  sufficiently  far  apart 
to  produce  an  effective  contrast  of  light  and  shade.  The  arrange- 
ment of  the  masonry  of  the  face  of  the  dam  is  quite  original. 
For  structural  reasons,  the  dam  has  22  expansion  joints,  thus 
dividing  the  down-stream  face  into  21  panels  and  2  terminal 
structures.  At  each  expansion  joint  a  massive  band  of  rusti- 
cated stone  15  feet  wide  projects  boldly  from  the  general  sur- 


The  Catskill  Aqueduct  107 

face.  The  intermediate  panels  are  of  roughly  squared  stone, 
surrounded  by  borders  3l/2  feet  wide  of  dimension  stone  with 
relatively  Hat  surface.  Throughout  the  fields  of  the  panels,  head- 
ers of  dimension  stone,  about  \y2  feet  square,  set  to  a  diamond 
pattern,  project  slightly  from  the  general  surface.  See  illustra- 
tion. 

Along  the  level  portion  of  the  visible  base  of  the  dam  is  a 
masonry  terrace,  about  30  feet  broad  and  10  feet  above  the 
adjacent  earth.  Separated  from  the  terrace  by  a  tree-planted 
plaza,  is  a  rectangular  pool  with  fountains,  forming  a  fitting 
terminal  to  the  Bronx  river  parkway. 

The  inHow  and  outHow  gate  houses  of  the  reservoir,  which 
are  separated  by  a  distance  of  about  2l/\.  miles,  are  connected 
outside  the  reservoir  by  a  by-pass  conduit  of  concrete,  11  feet  in 
diameter,  by  means  of  which  water  can  be  conducted  to  the  aque- 
duct south  of  the  reservoir  without  the  intermediation  of  the 
reservoir  if  at  any  time  it  becomes  desirable. 

When,  as  determined  by  analysis  at  the  laboratory  in  Xew 
York  City,  the  water  in  the  Ashokan  reservoir  requires  chemical 
treatment  for  purification,  it  receives  its  first  treatment  at  Asho- 
kan, its  second,  here  at  Kensico  reservoir,  and  its  final  treat- 
ment at  Hill  View  reservoir. 

When  the  work  in  Kensico  reservoir  was  at  its  height, 
about  1,500  men  and  their  families  lived  in  the  camp  built  by  the 
contractor  a  few  hundred  feet  down-stream  from  the  dam.  There 
were  also  smaller  outlying  camps.  The  provision  for  the  wel- 
fare of  these  men  and  their  families  during  the  years  of  con- 
struction was  the  same  in  kind  as  that  described  under  the  head 
of  the  Ashokan  reservoir. 

From  Kensico  to  Hill  View  Reservoir 

From  Kensico  reservoir  the  aqueduct  runs  U>  miles  south- 
ward to  Hill  View  reservoir.  In  this  stretch  there  are  six  i^rade 
tunnels  aggregating  over  2]/2  miles,  the  principal  one  of  which  is 
the  East  View  tunnel,  over  a  mile  long.  In  a  portion  of  the 
East  View  tunnel,  the  rock  penetrated  was  found,  after  construc- 
tion, to  contain  acid-forming  mineral :  and  water,  percolating 
through  this  rock,  became  acidulated  and  attacked  the  concrete 
tunnel  lining.  This  difficulty  was  overcome  by  adding  an  inter- 
lining of  vitrified  brick  to  this  portion  of  the  tunnel.  IVtween 


io8  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

Kensico  and  Hill  View  reservoirs  there  are  five  siphons  aggre- 
gating two  miles,  over  half  of  which  is  represented  by  the  Bryn 
Mawr  siphon.  The  principal  work  in  this  section  is  the  Yonkers 
pressure  tunnel,  2%  miles  long.  The  southern  end  of  this  tun- 
nel is  about  120  feet  under  ground,  at  an  elevation  of  138  feet 
above  tide-level.  From  this  end,  an  up-take  shaft  carries  the 
water  up  into  Hill  Yiew  reservoir. 

Hill  View  Reservoir 

Hill  View  reservoir  is  in  the  City  of  Yonkers  just  north  of 
the  New  York  City  line.  Its  function  is  to  equalize  the  differ- 
ences in  the  use  of  water  in  the  City  of  New  York  from  hour 
to  hour.  The  final  chemical  treatment  of  the  water  is  given  here 
if  necessary  for  its  purification.  It  is  an  artificial  reservoir  of 
the  earth  embankment  type,  with  a  depth  of  36%  feet  holding 
900,000,000  gallons  of  water.  It  has  a  water  surface  of  90 
acres  at  a  flow  line  of  295  feet.  Unlike  the  Ashokan  and  Ken- 
sico reservoirs,  the  bottom  is  protected  by  six  inches  of  concrete. 
The  lower  portion  of  the  inner  slope  of  the  embankment  is  also 
protected  by  eight  inches  of  concrete.  The  reservoir  is  divided 
into  two  basins  by  a  wall  that  contains  the  aqueduct,  so  that 
either  basin  may  be  used,  or  the  reservoir  may  be  entirely  cut 
out,  if  desired,  by  a  by-pass. 

New  York  City  Pressure  Tunnel 

From  the  Hill  View  reservoir  the  water  drops  through  a 
down-take  shaft  300  feet  to  a  depth  of  40  feet  below  tide  level 
and  enters  the  great  city  pressure  tunnel.  From  this  point  onward, 
the  aqueduct  is  constructed  through  solid  rock  until  it  reaches 
its  terminal  shafts  in  Brooklyn  and  Queens  and  starts  to  cross 
the  Narrows.  For  the  first  5%  miles,  from  Hill  View  reser- 
voir to  the  Harlem  river,  through  the  Borough  of  the  Bronx, 
the  aqueduct  is  about  250  feet  below  the  surface  of  the  ground, 
in  Fordham  gneiss.  Its  course  through  the  Bronx  is  indicated 
by  the  location  of  the  shafts  and  its  depth  below  the  surface 
by  the  length  of  the  shafts,  as  follows : 


The  Catskill  Aqueduct  109 

Depth 

below 
surface  of 
Shaft — Location  Ground 

1.  241st  street  and  Jerome  avenue.  Van  Cortlandt  Park 245 

2.  Mosholu  and  Jerome  avenues.  Van  Cortlandt  Park 228 

3.  Sedgwick  avenue  and  Mosholu  Parkway,  Jerome   Park  Reser- 

voir       218 

4.  196th  street  and  Jerome  avenue.  Jerome  Park  Reservoir 242 

5.  183d  street  and  Aqueduct  avenue 226 

6.  176th  street  and  Aqueduct  avenue 278 

7.  167th  street  and  Sedgwick  avenue 352 

At  the  Harlem  river  it  drops  to  a  depth  of  331  feet  below 
tide-level  to  pass  under  the  Stockbridge  dolomite  which  under- 
lies the  river  to  Manhattan  island.  Its  course  through  Manhat- 
tan is  indicated  by  the  location  of  the  shafts,  as  follows : 

Depth 

below 
Shaft — Location  Surface 

8.  165th  street  and  High  Bridge  Park 478 

9.  150th  street  and  St.   Nicholas  avenue 441 

10.  135th  street  and  St.  Nicholas  Park 405 

11.  121st  street  and  Morningside  Park 449 

12.  106th  street  and  Central  Park  (west  side ) 262 

13.  93d  street  and  Central  Park  (west  side) 253 

14.  79th  street  and  Central  Park  (west  side ) 240 

15.  65th  street  and  Central  Park  (near  center) 221 

16.  50th  street  and  Sixth  avenue 218 

17.  Sixth   avenue  and  Bryant  Park 223 

18.  24th  street  and  Broadway  (Madison  Square) 205 

19.  6th  street  and  Fourth  avenue  (Cooper  Square ) 7 

20.  Delancey  and  Eldridge  streets 749 

21.  Clinton  "  and    South   streets 752 

From  a  depth  of  331  feet  below  sea-level  at  Harlem  river, 
the  aqueduct  continues  to  descend  in  order  to  get  under  the  in- 
secure limestone  (Stockbridge  dolomite)  which  underlies  the 
Manhattan  street  valley,  and  at  Morningside  Park  and  121st 
street  it  is  365  feet  below  tide-level.  It  then  rises  abruptly  until 
it  is  only  about  50  feet  below  tide  level  and  so  continues  till  it 
reaches  Cooper  Square.  There  it  drops  vertically  to  664  feet 
below  tide-level  preparatory  to  passing  under  the  East  river.  In 
its  course  through  Manhattan  Island,  the  aqueduct  encountered 
several  subterranean  springs,  which  were  successfully  dealt  with.* 
Xear  Madison  Square,  a  few  slight  cracks  were  caused  by  the. 
compression  of  the  rock  under  pressure  of  the  water,  and  the 

*  A  curious  example  of  thvs  is  afforded  by  the  experience  of  the  New  Netherland 
bank  at  No.  41  West  Thirty-fourth  street.  When  the  hank  building  was  erected  in 
1904  a  never-failing  spring  was  struck  and  the  owners  of  the  building  had  to  install  an 
automatic  pump  in  the  cellar  to  keep  the  water  pumped  out.  When  the  aqueduct  was 
driven  under  that  building  in  1914  the  spring  was  cut  off  and  the  use  or  the  cellar 
pump  has  been  discontinued.  Oppenheim,  Collins  &  Co.,  next  adjoining  on  the  east 
at  35  West  Thirty-fourth  street,  had  a  similar  experience. 


no  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

tunnel  was  made  tight  by  adding  a  sheet  copper  lining.  The 
yielding  of  the  rock  under  pressure,  the  cracking  of  the  tunnel 
lining  and  the  consequent  outward  leakage  were  so  slight  that 
if  they  had  occurred  out  in  the  country  no  remedy  would  have 
been  required. 

The  aqueduct  passes  from  Manhattan  Island  at  Clinton  and 
South  streets  to  Long  Island  at  Sands  and  Bridge  streets,  under 
the  rotten  rock  of  the  East  river,  at  a  depth  of  704  feet  below 
sea-level  and  752  feet  below  the  surface  of  the  ground  on  the 
Manhattan  side.  Shaft  21  deeper  than  the  Woolworth  building 
is  high. 

On  the  Brooklyn  side,  the  aqueduct  comes  up  to  above  sea- 
level,  and  continues  at  varying-  heights  to  Fort  Greene  Park  by 
the  following  routes. 

Depth 
below 
surface  of 
Shaft — Location  Ground 

22.  Sands  and  Bridge  streets 717 

23.  Flatbush  avenue  and  Schermerhorn  street 318 

24.  Fort  Greene  Park  at  Myrtle  avenue l .  329 

From  Brooklyn,  the  water  is  conducted  to  the  Boroughs  of 
Queens  and  Richmond. 

Crossing  the  Narrows 

The  crossing  of  the  Narrows,  from  Brooklyn  to  Richmond 
(Staten  Island)  is  accomplished  in  a  very  ingenious  manner. 
Instead  of  tunneling  under  the  Narrows,  where  the  rock  is  at  an 
unknown  depth,  a  36-inch  flexible  jointed  cast  iron  pipe  was  laid 
in  a  trench  dredged  in  the  bottom  of  the  harbor.  This  pipe  was 
made  in  twelve-foot  lengths,  the  joints  being  designed  on  the  ball- 
and-socket  principle,  allowing  for  a  maximum  deflection  of 
10°  5(X  more  or  less.  The  joints  were  filled  with  lead,  about 
300  pounds  of  lead  being  used  in  each.  Starting  from  the  gate 
chamber  on  the  Brooklyn  side,  the  pipe  was  laid  from  a  derrick 
scow  which  moved  toward  Staten  Island  as  joint  after  joint  was 
added  to  the  inboard  end  on  the  scow.  The  portion  of  the  pipe 
between  the  scow  and  the  bottom  of  the  harbor  was  sustained 
in  a  curve  by  temporary  rising  which  was  carried  along  by  the 
scow  as  the  work  progressed.  When  Staten  Island  was  reached, 
connection  was  made  with  the  gate-house  on  that  shore.  The 


III 


ii2  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

total  length  of  this  siphon  is  9830  feet.     Meters  at  each  end 
indicate  the  leakage,  if  any.     (See  illustration.) 

Silver  Lake  Reservoir 

From  the  Staten  Island  end  of  the  Narrows  siphon,  at  the 
foot  of  Arietta  street,  a  48-inch  cast-iron  pipe  is  laid  through 
Arietta  street,  Richmond  road,  etc.,  to  Silver  Lake  reservoir, 
which  is  situated  a  mile  and  three-quarters  southwest  of  St. 
George.  The  length  of  the  aqueduct  from  Ashokan  to  this  reser- 
voir is  119  miles,  to  be  exact,  but  it  is  called  120  miles  in  round 
numbers.  The  reservoir  is  about  2400  feet  long  and  1500  feet 
wide,  and  holds  about  435,000,000  gallons.  It  is  formed  by 
natural  depressions  in  the  ground  with  earth  embankments.  -The 
area  of  the  water  surface  is  54  acres,  which  is  surrounded  by  111 
acres  of  land.  It  has  over  a  mile  and  a  half  of  shore  line.  The 
water  is  35  feet  deep,  and  rises  to  a  level  at  228  feet  above  tide. 
The  difference  in  the  elevation  of  the  surface  of  Silver  Lake  and 
Ashokan  reservoirs,  362  feet,  is  due  to  friction. 

Measuring  the  Water 

To  keep  track  of  the  amount  of  water  passing  through  the 
aqueduct,  and  to  detect  leakage,  Venturi  meters  have  been  .in- 
stalled at  various  places.  Those  at  the  big  reservoirs  are  the 
largest  water-meters  ever  built.  There  is  one  just  below  the 
Ashokan  reservoir,  a  second  just  above  the  Kensico  reservoir,  and 
a  third  where  the  water  is  drawn  from  the  Kensico  reservoir. 
Each  of  these  meters  is  410  feet  long,  of  reinforced  concrete  ex- 
cepting for  the  bronze  throat  castings  and  the  piezometer  ring, 
which  is  also  of  cast  bronze.  In  addition  to  these  large  meters, 
five  gaging  chambers  have  been  built  at  various  points  along  the 
aqueduct  where  the  flow  of  water  is  measured  by  means  of  cur- 
rent meters.  In  the  city  tunnel  just  north  of  shaft  2  is  a  Venturi 
meter  which  measures  all  the  Catskill  water  suppplied  to  the  City, 
and  in  the  connection  to  Jerome  Park  reservoir  a  Venturi  meter 
measures  the  flow  in  either  direction.  In  the  city  tunnel  there 
is  a  Venturi  meter  upon  each  connection  between  the  tunnel 
and  the  distribution  pipes  in  the  streets. 

Cost  of  Construction 
While  the  Catskill  aqueduct  is  completed  in  the  sense  that 


The  Catskill  Aqueduct  113 

it  is  now  delivering  250,000,000  gallons  of  water  a  day  to  the 
city,  the  constructive  work  of  the  Board  of  Water  Supply, — 
which  must  always  be  distinguished  from  the  administrative  De- 
partment of  Water  Supply,  Gas  and  Electricity — is  not  yet  fin- 
ished. The  Catskill  aqueduct  has  been  built  with  the  capacity 
to  transmit  500,000,000  gallons  a  day,  but  the  Esopus  watershed 
can  supply  only  250,000,000  gallons.  The  Board  of  Water  Sup- 
ply is  therefore  still  engaged  in  developing  the  Schoharie  water- 
shed which  is  to  furnish  the  next  250,000,000  gallons  a  day.  The 
Catskill  aqueduct  has  cost  about  $140,000,000  thus  far,  and  the 
Schoharie  development  will  cost  about  $22,000,000  more. 

Distribution   of   Water 

The  filling  of  Hill  View  reservoir  began  November  30,  1915, 
and  Catskill  water  was  first  introduced  into  the  distribution  pipes 
of  Xew  York  City,  in  the  Borough  of  the  Bronx,  December  27, 
1915.  Manhattan  Borough  was  first  supplied  November  29,  1916 : 
Brooklyn  and  Queens  Boroughs  January  22,  1917;  and  the  filling 
of  Silver  Lake  reservoir,  in  the  Borough  of  Richmond,  began 
January  27,  1917. 

The  administration  of  the  water-supply  of  the  city  is  in  the 
hands  of  the  Department  of  Water  Supply,  Gas  and  Electricity, 
of  which  Commissioner  William  Williams  is  the  head. 

The  water  is  distributed  through  3,127  miles  of  city-owned 
water  mains  within  Greater  Xew  York,  of  which  172  miles  are 
high  pressure  mains.  Of  the  latter,  128  miles  are  in  Manhattan 
and  44  in  Brooklyn.  The  distribution  is  controlled  by  66,300 
gates.  There  are  49,200  fire  hydrants  in  the  Greater  City,  of 
which  4,100  are  on  the  high  pressure  service  in  Manhattan  and 
Brooklyn. 

The  Catskill  water  will  rise  by  gravity  in  lower  Xew  York 
to  a  height  of  about  280  feet  above  tide  water,  or  to  about  the 
sixteenth  story  of  a  building.  A  modern  fire  engine  can  pump 
it  to  the  top  of  the  Woolworth  building,  which  is  750  feet  high. 
The  ''high  pressure"  service  referred  to  is  designed  to  do  the 
wrork  of  the  most  powerful  fire-engine  on  a  larger  scale.  There 
are  two  high  pressure  stations  in  lower  Manhattan,  each  forc- 
ing into  the  high  pressure  mains  as  much  water  as  40  fire-engines. 
There  are  two  high  pressure  stations  in  Brooklyn.  A  high  pres- 
sure hydrant  can  furnish  as  many  streams  as  five  ordinary 


Ti4  The  Catskill  Aqueduct 

fire-engines  and  send  the  water  fourteen  stories  high ;  and  through 
stand-pipes  the  water  can  be  sent  forty  stories  high.  Salt  water 
can  be  used  in  the  high  pressure  system  if  needed.  (See  illus- 
tration.) 

The  city,  now  consumes  water  at  the  rate  of  about  600,000,- 
000  gallons  a  day,  of  which  40,000,000  gallons  are  supplied  by 
private  companies  and  560,000,000  by  the  city.  Of  the  latter, 
250,000,000  gallons  are  Catskill  water  and  the  balance  Croton 
water.  The  two  Croton  aqueducts  have  a  combined  capacity  of 
390,000,000  gallons  a  day,  but  for  economic  reasons  only  so 
much  thereof  as  is  necessary  to  supplement  the  Catskill  supply 
is  used,  the  remainder  being  held  in  reserve.  The  uses  to  which 
the  Catskill  and  Croton  supplies  respectively  are  put  are  deter- 
mined by  their  respective  "heads"  or  pressures  due  to  elevation 
of  sources.  The  '"head"  of  the  Catskill  supply  is  nearly  two  and 
a  half  times  that  of  the  Croton,  sufficient  to  send  it  by  gravity  to 
all  portions  of  the  Bronx  and  Brooklyn  and  to  all  buildings  of 
average  height  in  other  than  the  very  highest  portions  of  the 
three  remaining  boroughs.  As  this  saves  the  expense  of  pump- 
ing, the  Catskill  water  is  the  more  valuable  of  the  two. 

In  concluding  this  sketch  of  the  Catskill  aqueduct,  it  must 
again  be  confessed  that 'it  very  inadequately  conveys  an  idea  of 
the  magnitude  of  the  work  accomplished  and  of  the  splendid 
services  rendered  by  those  who  encouraged,  sustained  and  carried 
it  out.  The  whole  is  epitomized  in  the  significant  inscription  upon 
the  commemorative  medal  struck  by  the  Mayor's  Catskill  Aque- 
duct Celebration  Committee,  which  characterizes  it  as 

AN  ACHIEVEMENT  OF  Civic  SPIRIT 

SCIENTIFIC  GENIUS  AND 

FAITHFUL  LABOR 


Chapter  VIII 
An  Allegorical  Pageant 

"The  Good  Gift  of  Water" 

The  pageant,  as  distinguished  from  a  parade,  has  in  recent 
years  come  to  be  recognized  in  America,  as  for  years  it  has  been 
recognized  abroad,  as  a  very  effective  form  of  educational  com- 
memoration. The  historical  facts  and  civic  and  moral  lessons  of 
the  Catskill  aqueduct  are -readily  susceptible  of  expression  in  this 
form  of  art,  and  with  a  view  to  such  performances,  either  in  an 
unpretentious  way  by  school-children  or  on  a  more  elaborate  scale 
by  others,  the  following  suggestion-  for  a  pageant  entitled  "The 
Good  Gift  of  Water"  were  prepared.  As  it  is  possible  that  these 
suggestions  may  be  helpful  to  other  communities  on  similar  occa- 
sions, they  are  given  herewith. 

The  pageant  consists  of  a  Prologue,  five  Episodes  or  Alle- 
gories, and  an  Epilogue, 

The  Prologue  represents  man's  prime  need  of  water  to  sus- 
tain life,  and  the  universal  prayer  which  all  races  and  creeds 
of  all  ages,  from  the  aborigines  to  the  present  time,  have  lifted 
up  to  Heaven  for  water. 

The  five  Allegories  depict  the  five  great  uses  of  water.  The 
first  symbolizes  the  gift  of  water  for  food  production,  at 
the  same  time  typifying  the  manner  in  which  Nature  gives 
water  to  man.  The  second  symbolizes  the  gift  of  water  for 
drink,  and  the  curse  of  drunkenness.  The  third  represents  the 
gift  of  water  for  health  ;  in  this  are  included  the  general  ideas 
of  personal  cleanliness,  domestic  hygiene  and  public  sanitation. 
The  fourth  represents  the  use  of  water  for  fire  extinguishment. 
And  the  fifth  typifies  the  use  of  water  for  power,  its  use  in 
the  industries,  and  its  function  in  Bearing  commerce. 

The  Epilogue  represents  the  city  sending  to  the  mountain? 
for  water :  the  building  of  the  aqueduct ;  Ashokan  giving 
water  to  the  city :  and  the  distribution  of  the  water  to  the  five 
Boroughs :  the  whole  concluding  with  a  choral  ascription  of 
praise  to  God  from  whom  all  blessings  flow. 

The  mechanical  arrangements  contemplate  the  erection  at  one 
end  of  the  enclosure  (called  hereafter  the  "left")  of  a  stage. 


n6  An  Allegorical   Pageant 

simulating  a  natural  elevated  plateau  cf  rocks  and  earth,  upon 
which  there  is  a  throne  with  seats  for  the  principal  characters. 
The  painted  background  in  the  first  Allegory  is  simply  sky  and 
light  clouds;  in  the  other  scenes  it  is  sky  and  trees.  On  the 
plateau  is  a  small  fountain  and  basin,  the  overflowing  water  of 
which  falls  into  a  pool  located  on  the  ground  in  front  of  the 
stage.  Back  of  the  pool,  under  the  stage,  is  a  grotto,  the  abode 
of  the  Water  Spirits. 

At  the  opposite  end  of  the  enclosure  (called  the  "right'')  is  a 
mountain,  the  abode  of  Ashokan. 

Midway  between  the  stage  and  Mountain  (called  the  "center") 
the  Prologue  calls  for  a  few  Indian  wigwams ;  and  the  third  and 
fourth  Allegories  for  a  cluster  of  cottages  to  represent  a  village. 

The  other  mechanical  requirements  are  suggested  by  the  text. 

The  whole  is  susceptible  of  the  most  beautiful  lighting  effects, 
if  produced  at  night,  as,  for  instance,  in  the  first  Allegory  in 
which  the  Clouds  take  on  different  hues.  If  the  pageant  be 
produced  in  the  daytime,  the  references  to  changing  lights  are 
to  be  disregarded. 

Prologue:  The  Universal  Prayer 

The  Prologue  represents  in  the  middle  ground  (center)  an 
Indian  village  on  Manhattan  Island,  in  the  month  of  the  Planting 
Moon.  The  inhabitants  are  engaged  in  various  domestic  occupa- 
tions. The  Sachem  calls  them  together  and  announces  that 
Planting  Time  has  come.  They  take  down  ears  of  corn  which 
hang  on  their  wigwams,  shell  the  corn,  and  soak  the  kernels  in 
water.  With  their  wooden  hoes  and  pointed  sticks  they  plant  the 
corn.  Then  they  gather  and  have  a  Rain  Dance  and  a  Corn  Plant- 
ing Dance,  looking  upward  and  lifting  up  their  hands  to  the  skies, 
praying  for  rain.  When  their  ceremonies  are  over,  they  sit 
upon  the  ground  around  their  camp-fires. 

The  action  shifts  to  a  .distant  elevation  (the  left),  upon 
which  an  altar  has  been  raised.  Priests  of  different  races, 
ancient  and  modern,  in  their  robes  of  office,  appear  before  it  and 
pray  for  rain.  The  Babylonian  priest  sets  up  his  Fish-God, 
symbolizing,  in  their  ancient  belief,  the  union  of  Wisdom  and 
Water;  and  other  priests  set  up  their  respective  divinities  or 
symbols  and  chant  their  supplications. 

The  Indians,  hearing  the  distant  music,  steal  toward  it,  and, 


I 

i 

JS 

J3 

I 

— 


60 

C 

I 


117 


u8  An  Allegorical  Pageant 

gathering  at  the  foot  of  the  eminence,  join  in  the  Universal 
Prayer,  which  all  men  of  all  ages  have  offered  to  Heaven  for 
the  Good  Gift  of  Water  to  meet  their  Universal  Need. 

First  Allegory:   The   Gift   of  Water   for   Food 

The  Sun,  dressed  in  .splendor,  enters,  riding  in  a  golden 
chariot.  His  horses  are  led  by  the  Hours ;  he  is  attended  by  the 
four  Winds  and  is  followed  by  the  four  Seasons.  He  rides 
around  the  earth  and  ascends  his  shining  throne  (left).  He  has 
heard  the  prayers  of  men  for  rain  and  sends  the  four  Winds  to 
bring  the  Clouds.  The  Clouds,  in  light  flowing  draperies  and 
carrying  little  vases  or  goblets  of  water,  come  at  his  bidding. 
They  dance  toward  him  in  groups,  taking  on  various  hues  as 
they  gradually  approach  his  throne.  They  ascend  the  eminence 
on  which  he  is  elevated  and  gather  around  him  so  closely  that  they 
obscure  his  light  and  they  themselves  become  dark.*-  At  the  signal 
of  thunder  peal  and  lightning  flash,  the  Clouds  break  away  and 
the  Sun  reappears.  The  Clouds  go  flying  down  to  the  earth, 
emptying  their  vases  and  growing  brighter  as  they  go.  Then 
the  Corn-Maidens  and  the  Flower  Maidens  (who  have  been 
lying  on  the  ground  concealed  under  brown  mantles)  spring 
up,  throw  off  their  earthy  coverings,  and  with  corn-stalks  and 
sheaves  of  flowers  in  their  hands,  dance  in  the  sun-light  and 
make  glad  the  earth. 

Second  Allegory:  The  Gift  of  Water  for  Drink 

Upon  the  eminence  at  one  end  of  the  enclosure  (left)  is  a  foun- 
tain with  a  background  of  trees.  Its  overflowing  waters  fall  into 
a  pool  upon  the  ground  below.  Behind  the  pool  is  a  grotto. 
Beside  the  fountain  on  the  eminence  are  two  Ministering  Spirits. 
Around  the  pool  below  and  in  the  grotto  are  many  Water  Spirits. 
A  procession,  symbolizing  Humanity,  slowly  approaches  the 
eminence  in  single  file,  ascends  at  one  side,  partakes  of  the 
refreshing  waters,  passes  on  and  descends  on  the  other  side. 
In  the  procession  is  a  traveller  leaning  heavily  on  his  staff;  a 
horseman  leading  his  jaded  steed;  a  drover  leading  his  thirsty 
ox;  a  husbandman  with  scythe  over  his  shoulder  wiping  his 
brow ;  a  woman  with  babe  in  her  arms ;  a  man  with  a  burden 

*  This  effect  may  be  produced  by  lessening  the  illumination  if  produced  by  night, 
or  by  having  the  outer  clouds  in  darker  draperies  if  represented  by  daylight. 


An  Allegorical  Pageant  119 

on  his  back.  etc.  Some  sit  a  moment  by  the  fountain  while  the 
Ministering  Spirits  bathe  their  brows.  All  drink  the  water 
offered  by  the  Spirits  and  resume  their  journey  refreshed. 

The  scene  shifts  to  the  middle  of  the  enclosure  (center)  and 
reveals  a  Bacchanalian  or^ie.  The  ,^rod  of  Strong  Drink,  sur- 
rounded by  Satyrs,  is  leading-  slovenly-clothed  men  and  women 
in  a  drunken  revel.  They  dance  and  drink,  quarrel  and  fight.  One 
man  strikes  another  down,  symbolizing  crime.  The  men  and 
women  gradually  fall  from  exhaustion  and  inebrietv.  Bacchus 
and  the  Satyrs  dance  in  glee  around  their  victims. 

The  Water  Spirits  go  to  the  rescue.  They  surge  tov-v.rd  the 
Evil  Ones,  and  the  opposing  forces  sway  back  and  forth  alter- 
nately striving  for  the  spiritual  mastery.  At  length  the  \\Yter 
Spirits  succeed  in  forming  a  ring  around  the  fallen  ones,  and  the 
Evil  Spirit?,  with  a  cry  of  defeat,  flee  into  darkness.  The  Water 
Spirits  bring  water,  bathe  the  brows  of  the  fallen  and  give 
them  water  to  drink.  When  the  prostrate  ones  drink,  they  rise 
from  the  ground,  their  bad  habits — typified  by  spoiled  gar- 
ments— fall  away ;  they  appear  transformed ;  and  all  join  in  a 
dance  of  thanksgiving. 

Third  Allegory:  The  Gift  of  Water  for  Health 

At  one  end  of  the  enclosure  (left)  Hygeia,  the  goddess  of 
Health,  and  her  father  yEsculapius,  in  white  robes,  sit  upon  an 
elevation  by  a  fountain  of  healing  waters.  Around  the  pool  and 
in  the  grotto  below  are  Water  Spirits. 

At  the  opposite  end  of  the  enclosure  (right)  two  cloaked  and 
hooded  figures  squat  upon  a  heap  of  earth :  The  one  in  the  gray 
cloak  IN  Disease.  The  one  in  the  black  cloak,  whose  face  looks 
like  a  skull,  is  Death.  Their  cloaks  are  supposed  to  make  them 
invisible. 

Between  the  two  extremities  ('center)  is  a  little  village.  The 
villagers  are  indolent  and  negligent.  The  men  lounge  and  smoke : 
the  women  gossip.  Then  they  go  to  an  open  space  somewhat 
apart  from  their  cottages  and  have  folk-dances. 

While  the  villagers  are  making  merry,  repulsive  figures,  half 
beast  and  half  human,  representing  Filth  in  various  forms,  crawl 
out  of  little  hovels  by  the  houses.  Some  wallow  in  the  vil- 
lage street ;  some  bespatter  the  houses  with  mud ;  some  rummage 
among  and  overturn  the  waste  receptacles;  some  crawl  in  win- 


I2O  An  Allegorical  Pageant 

dows  and  doors  and  come  out  again.  They  keep  this  up  while  the 
villagers  are  dancing  and  then  lie  down  like  dogs  by  the  houses. 

The  villagers  return  but  do  not  drive  off  the  filthy  beasts. 

Then  Disease  and  Death,  in  their  invisible  cloaks,  stalk  through 
the  village,  touching  the  door-posts,  and  pass  out  of  sight. 

Presently  the  women  come  out  of  one  cottage  and  wring  their 
hands  and  lament.  Other  villagers  come  out  of  their  houses  and 
join  their  lamentations.  The  wisest  man  of  the  village,  he  with 
a  long  beard,  gives  them  counsel,  and  then  goes  as  a  messenger 
for  ^Esculapius.  While  he  is  absent,  the  sick  on  their  sick-beds 
are  brought  out  into  the  village  street. 

The  white-robed  physician  leads  Hygeia  to  the  village.  They 
are  followed  by  the  Water  Spirits  carrying  basins  of  water.  They 
kill  the  Filth  beasts  by  sprinkling  and  the  dead  beasts  are  drag- 
ged out  of  the  village.  Then  the  street  is  sprinkled  from  the 
basins,  and  the  Water  Spirits  hold  the  basins  while  the  villagers 
bathe  their  faces  and  hands.  All  then  form  a  procession  and, 
carrying  the  sick-cots,  go  to  the  Pool  of  Health  where  the  sick 
are  healed  and  a  dance  of  rejoicing  is  held. 

Fourth  Allegory :  The  Gift  of  Water  for  Protection  from  Fire 

Around  the  pool  at  one  end  of  the  enclosure  (left)  the  Water 
Spirits,  carrying  voluminous  loose  draperies  of  light  green  color, 
sit  and  stand.  They  sport  among  themselves  and  splash  in  the 
water. 

At  the  opposite  end  of  the  enclosure  (right)  a  group  of  Fire 
Fiends,  dressed  in  red,  with  red  bat-like  wings,  sit,  stand  and 
make  sport  around  a  bonfire.  They  play  with  torches  and  fire- 
brands. 

Between  the  two  groups  (center)  is  a  cottage  occupied  by  a 
happy  family.  The  father  labors  in  the  field.  An  elder  daughter 
spins  before  the  door.  The  children  play  games.  The  mother 
goes  in  and  out  about  her  household  duties,  cooking  the  family 
meal.  Light  smoke  curls  from  the  chimney. 

The  chief  of  the  Fire  Fiends  steals  toward  the  cottage,  beck- 
oning to  his  fellows  to  follow.  The  first  one  fastens  himself  with 
his  outspread  hooked  wings  upon  the  side  of  the  little  house.  The 
chimney  smoke  increases.  Another  Fiend  approaches  followed 
by  more.  The  mother  discovers  them  and  gives  a  cry  of  alarm. 
The  family  try  to  beat  off  the  Fiends  but  more  come  to  the 


An  Allegorical   Pageant  121 

attack.  Other  villagers  join  in  the  fight  but  are  unable  to  drive 
the  enemy  away.  A  play  of  lurid  light  seems  to  foretell  the  doom 
of  •  the  house. 

Then  some  of  the  villagers  run  toward  the  pool  calling  on  the 
Water  Spirits  for  help.  The  latter  rush  to  the  rescue.  The 
Fire  Fiends  and  the  Water  Spirits  surge  back  and  forth,  the 
latter  trying  to  envelope  the  former  in  the  folds  of  their  loose 
draperies.  At  length,  the  Fiends  are  surrounded,  completely  en- 
veloped in  the  green  folds  of  Water,  and  are  smothered.  They 
fall  dying  to  the  ground,  covered  by  the  green  mantles.  The  vil- 
lagers rejoice  at  their  delivery. 

Fifth  Allegory:  The  Gift  of  Water  for  Industry  and 
Commerce 

Two  figures,  symbolizing  Industry  and  Commerce,  sit  upon  a 
throne  (left)  as  presiding  geniuses  of  the  scene.  Bales  of  goods, 
wheels  of  machinery,  and  other  objects  lie  at  their  feet. 

By  the  pool  near  the  throne  is  a  mill,  with  a  water-wheel, 
representing  the  use  of  water  in  Industry.  The  water-wheel 
turns  and  electric  lights  begin  to  glow  in  a  halo  above  the  heads 
of  Industry  and  Commerce.  Men  go  into  the  mill  carrying  bur- 
dens of  materials. 

The  procession  of  Commerce  enters  the  enclosure  in  four 
groups  and  approaches  the  mill.  First  is  a  group  of  Indians  bear- 
ing a  canoe  on  their  shoulders.  They  are  encircled  by  dancing 
Water  Spirits,  now  representing  Waves.  The  Waves  carry 
between  each  other  voluminous  green  draperies  which  they 
gently  undulate.  The  group  bears  the  canoe  to  the  mill  where 
it  receives  a  cargo,  presumably  corn  meal,  and  passes  along. 
Xext  comes  a  group  of  old  time  sailors,  bearing  on  their  should- 
ers a  sailing  vessel.  They  are  likewise  surrounded  by  dancing 
\Vaves.  They  halt  at  the  mill,  receive  their  cargo,  and  pass 
along.  In  like  manner  a  third  group  of  men  bearing  a  steamboat, 
and  a  fourth  group  in  the  uniform  of  the  Navy  bearing  a  war- 
ship, both  surrounded  by  \Vaves,  approach,  receive  their  car- 
goes, and  follow  their  predecessors.  The  procession  circles  the 
enclosure  and  gathers  in  the  middle.  Each  vessel  is  set  upon 
the  ground,  previously  covered  with  green  cloth  to  represent 
water.  The  Indians  gather  around  the  canoe  and  the  sailors 
gather  around  their  respective  ships.  The  Waves  form  a  circle 


122  An  Allegorical  Pageant 

around  all,  holding  their  green  draperies  between  each  other  and 
keeping  them  in  gentle  motion.  The  Indians  and  the  groups  of 
sailors  each  in  turn  have  a  characteristic  dance. 

A  fifth  group  of  Waves  now  enters  the  enclosure,  dancing 
and  bringing  Peace  and  Plenty  in  their  midst.  Peace,  with  a 
dove  on  her  shoulder,  carries  two  laurel  wreathes  in  her  hands. 
Plenty  carries  a  cornucopia  of  abundance.  As  they  go  around 
the  enclosure,  the  first  four  groups  follow  in  their  train  and  all 
proceed  to  the  foot  of  the  throne  (left).  Peace  and  Plenty 
ascend,  the  former  laying  wreaths  on  the  heads  of  Industry  and 
Commerce,  the  latter  emptying  her  cornucopia  at  their  feet.  In 
the  groups  below,  the  Waves  are  outermost,  dancing  and  gently 
waving  their  green  draperies. 

Epilogue:  The  Mountains  Give  Water  to  the  City 

Enthroned  upon  an  elevation  at  one  end  of  the  enclosure  (left) 
sit  five  classically  draped  female  figures,  symbolizing  the  five  Bor- 
oughs of  Greater  New  York.*  Festoons  of  flowers  unite  them. 
Above  them  presides  the  Mayor,  wearing  a  gown  as  Chief  Magis- 
trate of  the  City.  A  little  below  them,  on  the  same  elevated 
place,  sit  three  Commissioners  of  Water  Supply  in  conference. 
Near  them  are  engineers  studying  maps  with  surveying  instru- 
ments by  their  sides,  and  draftsmen  with  compasses  and  rulers 
drawing  plans. 

At  the  opposite  end  of  the  enclosure  (right)  upon  a  mountain, 
sits  an  Indian  chief,  personifying  Ashokan,  and  typifying  the 
Spirit  of  the  Mountains.  About  him,  little  Brownie-like  Moun- 
tain Sprites  gambol.  They  bring  him  water  to  drink  and  he 
drinks  some,  but  there  is  more  than  he  needs  and  he  motions  them 
to  go  away. 

After  due  deliberation  by  the  Water  Commissioners  and  en- 
gineers, the  chief  Commissioner  arises  and  addresses  the  Mayor, 
pointing  frequently  toward  the  Mountain.  The  Mayor  nods  as- 
sent and  hands  him  a  scroll  containing  a  command  to  go  to  the 
Mountain  and  seek  Water.  A  procession  starts  for  the  Moun- 
tain. First  go  the  Commissioners ;  next  the  engineers  who  meas- 
ure the  ground  as  they  go  and  set  up  little  stakes  or  flags  to  mark 
the  route;  and  next  a  few  workmen  with  picks  and  shovels  on 
their  shoulders. 


*  See  group  on  the  obverse  of  the  Greater  New  York  Medal,    1898,  designed  by 
the    writer. 


Mount  Prospect  Laboratory,  Brooklyn 


South  Street  High  Pressure  Fire  Service  Station,  Manhattan 

123 


124  An  Allegorical  Pageant 

Arriving  at  the  Mountain,  the  scroll  is  read  to  Ashokan.  He 
nods  his  assent,  claps  his  hands  and  the  Mountain  Sprites  bring 
him  a  large  Indian  jar.  The  Sprites  disappear  and  return  with 
gourds  or  small  jars  of  water  which  they  empty  into  the  large 
jar. 

The  Commissioners  clap  their  hands  and  motion  to  the  engi- 
neers and  workmen  to  proceed  with  their  task.  The  Commission- 
ers remain  with  Ashokan;  the  engineers  and  workmen  slowly 
retrace  their  steps  toward  the  City,  the  workmen  striking  the 
ground  with  their  picks  and  shovels. 

As  they  proceed,  the  Aqueduct  Spirits  (who  formerly  repre- 
sented the  Water  Spirits)  come  trooping  into  the  enclosure, 
bringing  large  circlets  or  hoops  decorated  with  flowers.  Some 
roll  their  hoops,  others  skip  with  them.  They  go  through  various 
picturesque  evolutions  and  finally  form  a  line  beginning  at  the 
Mountain  and  stretching  toward  the  City.  They  hold  their 
hoops  in  a  row,  forming  the  outline  of  a  tube.  The  Commission- 
ers, Ashokan  bearing  the  jar  of  water,  and  the  Mountain  Sprites 
descend  and  pass  through  the  Aqueduct,*  to  the  City.  Ashokan 
delivers  the  water- jar  to  the  Mayor  who,  in  turn,  pours  out  five 
gobletfuls  of  water  and  delivers  them  to  the  five  Boroughs.  The 
Boroughs  rise  and  drink,  and  all  present  join  in  the  final  chorale, 
"Praise  God  from  whom  all  blessings  flow." 


*  If  preferred,  the  Aqueduct  Spirits  may  carry  long  flexible  wands  instead  of 
hoops,  and,  standing  in  double  file,  form  an  archway  with  their  wands  to  represent 
the  Aqueduct.  If  there  are  not  enough  figures  to  reach  from  the  Mountain  to  the 
City,  those  who  are  nearest  the  Mountain  may,  after  Ashokan  has  passed  them, 
dance  to  the  other  end  of  the  line  and  thus  continually  extend  it  until  the  City  is 
reached. 


Chapter    IX. 
The    Mayor's   Celebration  Committee 

In  A Tarch,  1916,  Messrs.  Grosvenor  Atterbury,  A.  B.  Hep- 
burn, John  J.  Kling,  George  Frederick  Kunz,  John  W.  Lieb,  Jr., 
C.  Grant  La  Farge.  William  M.  Carroll,  Cyrus  C.  Miller,  William 
Fellowes  Morgan,  E.  H.  Outerbridge,  Theodore  Rousseau,  Wil- 
liam Jay  Schieffelin,  C.  F.  Shallcross,  Bradley  Stoughton  and 
Henry  R.  Towne,  organized  into  a  preliminary  committee,  met 
Mayor  Mitchel  and  requested  him  to  appoint-  a  citizens  commit- 
tee to  arrange  a  fitting  celebration  of  the  completion  of  the  Cuts- 
kill  aqueduct.  On  December  22,  1916,  His  Honor  appointed  for 
that  purpose  a  committee  of  about  750  citizens,  and  pursuant  to 
his  invitation,  the  committee  met  in  the  City  Hall  on  Wednesday 
afternoon,  January  3,  1917,  and  organized.  Hon.  George  Mc- 
Aneny, formerly  President  of  the  Board  of  Aldermen,  was  desig- 
nated by  the  Mayor  as  Chairman ;  and  the  executive  organization 
was  effected  later.  The  officers,  Executive  Committee,  and  Chair- 
men of  sub-committees  are  as  follows : 

Chairman 

Hon.  George  McAneny 

Treasurer  Secretary 

Isaac  N.  Seligman  Edward  Hagaman  Hall 

EXECUTIVE  COMMITTEE 

Chairman 
Arthur  Williams 

\Yilliam  C.  Breed  Samuel  L    Martin 

\Yilliam  Hamlin  Childs  Hon.  William  McCarroll 

Edward  Hagaman  Hall,  L.  H.  D.  Isaac  N.  Seligman 
George  Frederick  Kunz,  Ph.  D.,  Sc.  Charles  H.  Strong 
J.  W.  Lieb  Jr.  Henry  S.  Thompson 

Hon.  George  McAneny  Henry  R.  Towne 

Chairmen    of   Sub-committees 
Central  Park  Pageantry,  William  J.  Lee 
City  Hall  Exercises.  William  Fellowes  Morgan 
Civic   Bodies,   Robert  Greer  Cooke 
Illuminations,  Nicholas  F.  Brady 
Official  Dinner,  Hon.  ElberfH.  Gary 
Official  Medal.  Robert  W.  de  Forest,  LL.   I  '. 
Museum  Exhibits,  George  F.  Kunz,  Ph.  D.,  Sc.  1  > 
Music  Festivals,  Oswald  G.  Yillard.  Litt.  D.,  LL.  D. 
Public  Schools,  Leo  Arnstein 
Religious  Exercises,  Rev.  Walter  Laidlaw,   Ph.  D. 


126          The    Mayor's  Celebration  Committee 


The  Executive  Committee  is  acting  as  the  Committee  on 
Permanent  Memorial. 

The  following  are  the  names  of  the  entire  Mayor's  Com- 
mittee : 


Allan  Abbott 

Franklin  P.  Adams 

Hon.  Herbert  Adams 

John  Quincy  Adams,  L.  H.  D. 

Hon.  Robert  Adamson 

John  G.  Agar 

Robert  I.  Aitkin 

Edward  F.  Albee 

James  S.  Alexander 

Gen.  James  N.  Allison 

Louis  Annin  Ames 

A.  A.  Anderson 
Charles  W.  Anderson 
Edwin  H.  Anderson,  Litt.  D. 
(Sen.   Daniel  Appleton 
Edward  A.  Arnold 

Leo  Arnstein 
Charles  S.  Aronstam 
John  Aspegren 
Vincent  Astor 
Grosvenor  Atterbury 
Gordon  Auchincloss 
Joseph  S.  Auerbach 
Frank  L.  Babbott 
Robert  Low  Bacon 
Andrew  D.  Baird 
George  F.  Baker,  Jr. 
Stephen  Baker 
Hon.  Otto  T.  Bannard 
Albert  S.  Bard 

B.  Walter  Barnett 
Joseph  Barondess 
Hon.  Willard  Bartlett 
Bernard  M.  Baruch 
Hon.  Edward  M.  Bassett 
Benjamin  L.  M.   Bates 
Hon.  George  Gordon  Battle 
Samuel  Bauman 
Edmund  L.  Baylies 

Julian  B.  Beaty 
Hon.  James  M.  Beck 
Hon.  Daniel  M.  Bedell 
David  Belasco 
August  Belmont 
Henry  Harper  Benedict 
Russell  Benedict 
Hon.  John  A.  Bensel 
Charles  P.  Berkey,  Ph.  D. 
Charles  L.  Bernheimer 
Samuel  Reading  Berton 
Frank  H.  Bethell 
Nicholas  Biddle 
Cornelius  K.  G.  Billings 
Leo  Bing 


Robert  S.  Binkerd 

John  V.  Black 

J.   Stuart  Blackton 

Sol  Bloom 

S.  J.  Bloomingdale 

Eugene  Blumenthal 

John  Bogart,  Sc.  D. 

Henry  L.  Bogert 

Ernest  Bohm 

William  E.  Bohn 

G.  Louis  Boissevain 

Albert  C.   Bonaschi 

Paul  J.  Bonwit 

Robert  H.  Bosse 

John  McE.  Bowman 

Edward  F.  Boyle 

Nicholas  F.  Brady    . 

William  A.  Brady 

John  W.  Brannan,  M.  D, 

Marcus  Braun 

William  C.  Breed 

Cranston  Brenton 

W.  K.  Brice 

Max  D.  Brill 

Arthur  Brisbane 

Nathaniel  L.  kritton,  Ph.  D.,  Sc.  D. 

J.  Arthur  Brooks 

Elmer  E.  Brown,  LL.  D.,  Ph.  D. 

Henry  Collins  Brown 

Samuel  Brown,  M.  D. 

Arnold  W.  Brunner 

Henry  W.  Bull 

Benjamin  Bulmer 

Cyril  H.  Burdett 

George  W.  Burleigh 

Charles  C.  Burlingham 

Rev.  James  Burrell,  D.  D. 

John  H.  Burroughs 

Ellis  P.  Butler 

Glenworth  R.  Butler,  M.  D. 

Nicholas  M.  Butler,  LL.  D..  Ph.  D. 

Wallace  Buttrick,  M.  D. 

Henry  W.  Cannon 

\VilHam  B.   Cardoza 

Andrew   Carnegie,   LL.   D. 

J.  B.  Carrington 

Robert  A.  Carter 

John  J.  Cavanagh 

William  M.  Chadbourne 

Frank  R.  Chambers 

Walter  Chandler,  Jr. 

J.  Parke  Channing 

C.  E.  Chapin 

M.  S.  Chappelle 


The    Mayor's  Celebration  Committee          127 


Alexander  C.  Chenoweth 

Beverly  Chew 

William   Hamlin   Childs 

Hon.  Thomas  W.   Churchill 

Applcton  L.  Clark 

Hon.  William  A.  Clark 

Joseph  I.  C.  Clarke 

Lewis  L.  Clarke 

Henry  C!< 

Francis  Wright   Clint' >n 

Frank  I.  Cobb 

Thomas  Cochran 

William  S.  Coffin 

Edward  R.  Cohn 

Robert  J.   Collier 

Theodore  W.  Compton 

C.  B.  Com  stock 

Hon.  Maurice  E.  Connelly 

Joseph  E.  Constantine,  M.  D. 

Vito  Contessa 

Patrick  J.  Conway 

Robert  Grier  Cooke 

John  Cort 

George  A.  Cormack 

Hon.  George  B.  Cortelyou 

Clark  son  Cowl 

C  Ward  Crampton,  M.  D. 

Bruce  Crane 

Hon.  Alfred  Craven 

John  E.  Creighton 

Hon.  John  D.  Crimmins 

Herbert  Croly 

Lincoln  Cromwell 

William  B.  Crcwell 

Warrer  Cruikshank 

Frederick  Cunliffe-Owen 

E.  J.  Cuozzo 

Hon.  Henry  H.  Curran 

Harry  A.  Cushing 

R.  Fulton  Cutting 

Edward  H.  Daly 

Walter  Damrosch,  Mus.  D. 

-Vnderson  Dana 

Thomas  Darlington,  M.  D. 

Frank  E.  Davidson 

T.  Clarence  Davies 

T.  V.  Davies 

Hon.  Cherardi  Davis 

T  [enry  H.  Davis 

Hon.  Vernon  M.  Davis 

Allan  Dawson 

Joseph   P.  Day 

Tames  A.  Dayton 

George  Debevoise 

Joseph  H.  DeBragga 

Robert  W.-  DeForest,  LL.  D. 

Joseph  L.  Delafield 

Richard   Delafield 

Eugene  Delano 

Elia*  A.  DeLima 


1C  K.  Deming 
William  C.  Demo; 
Alfonso  DeXavarro 

.   Chauncey    M.    Depew 
Walter  T.  1  )iack 
Prof.   Frederick    Dielman 
Hon.  A.  J.  Dittenhoefer 
Dr.  Norman  F.  Dittman 
Cleveland  H.  Dodge 
Henry  L.  Doherty 
A.  L.  Doremus 
Louis  Hays  Dos  Passos 
J.  Hampden  Dougherty 
William  H.  Douglas 
Hon.  f  rank  L.  Dowling 
John  J.  Downing 
Michael   Dreicer 
Henry  Russell  Drowne 
Capt.  Charles  A.  DuBois 
William   Butler  Duncan 
Finley  Peter  Dunne 
John  Ward  Dunsmore 
Knowlton  Durham 
Thomas  F.  Dwyer 
(jen.  George  R.  Dyer 
Charles  Jerome  Edward 
George  Ehret,  Jr. 
Robert  W.  B.  Elliott 
Robert  Erskine  Ely 
Haven  Emerson.  M.  D. 
William  Emerson 
Joseph  H.  Emery 
Frank  C.  Erb 
Abraham  L.  Erlanger 
Lcander  B.  Faber 
Samuel  W.  Fairchild 
William  C.  Fargo 
William  V.   Farkas 
Arthur  Farwell 
Maurice  Featherson 
Hon.  John  T.   Fetherston 
Haley  Fiske 

William  E.  Fitch.  M.  D. 
Rev.  E.  D.  Fitzgerald 
Harry  H.  Flakier 
Prof.'  Henry  T.  Meek 
Neil  Flood 
Rube  R.  1 
James   P>.   Ford 
Edward  W.  Forrest 
Hon.  Raymond  B.  Fosdick 
Mortimer  Fouquet 
Thomas   P.   Fouler 
William  Fox 

Hon.  Joseph  N.   Francolini 
Hugh  Fravne 
John   R.   Freeman 
William  C.  Freeman 
Daniel  C.  French.  Litt.  D. 
Hon.  John  J.  Freschi 


128          The  Mayor's  Celebration  Committee 


Michael  Friedsam 
Algernon  S.  Frissell 
Algernon  S.  Friessell 
Frank  L.  Frugone 
Emil  E.  Fuchs 
C    H.  Fuller 
George  W.  Fuller 
Paul  Fuller,  Jr. 
Michael  Furst 
Robert  M.  Gallaway 
Col.  Asa  Bird  Gardiner 
Elbert  H.  Gary,  LL.  D. 
Charles  E.  Gehring 
Sumner  Gerard 
Arpad  G.  Gerster,  M.  D. 
Stuart  Gibboney 
Eugene  C.  Gibney 
Charles  Dana  Gibson 

A.  S.  Gilbert 
Cass  Gilbert 
W.  G.  Gilbert 
Isaac  Gimbel 
J.  M.  Glenn 
John  J.  Glennon 
Robert  Goelet 
Jacob  Goldstein 
James  Riley  Gordon 
Joseph  P.  Grace 
Rollin  P.  Grant 
Thomas  D.  Green 

Capt.   Richard  H.  Greene 

B.  J.  Greenhut 
Daniel  Greenwald 

Rt.  Rev.  David  H.  Greer.  D.  D. 

Herbert  L.  Griggs 

Hon.  Lloyd  C.  Griscom 

O.  J.  Gude 

Isaac  Guggenheim 

Dr.  Luther  H.  Gulick 

Herbert  F.  Gunnison 

Charles   T.   Gwynne 

R.  M.  Haan 

Henry  F.  Haas 

Rev.  Frank  O.  Hall.  D.  D. 

Edward  Haeaman  Hall,  L.  H.  D. 

Hon.  T.  T.  Halleran 

Francis  W.  Halsey 

Albert  Hallgarten 

George  M.  Hard 

Hon.  Lamar  Hardy 

John    Harmon 

Duncan  G.  Harris 

Tosenh  M.   Hartfield 

William    Hartfield 

Frank  E.  Harth 

John  A.  Hartwell,  M.  D. 

Ernest  Harvier 

Arthur  M.  Hatch 

James  A.  Hawes 

Hon.  McDougall  Hawkes 


J.  Noble  Hayes 

Rowland  Haynes 

Isaac  B.  Hazelton 

A.  Augustus  Healy 

Thomas  Healy 

Hon.  Job  E.  Hedges 

A.  Barton  Hepburn,  LL.  D.,  D.  C.  L. 

Victor  Herbert 

Oswald  C.  Hering 

Col.  William  Hester 

Theodore  Hetzler 

John  H.  Hill 

William   R.   Hillyer 

Stephen  D.  Hirschman 

Stuard  Hirschman 

James  T.  Hoile 

Edward  Holbrook 

Hamilton   Holt,   LL.    D. 

Hon.  John  J.  Hopper 

William  T.  Hornaday,  Sc.  D. 

Conrad  Hubert 

Hon.  Charles  E.  Hughes 

Chas.  Warren  Hunt,  LL.  D. 

Richard  H.  Hunt 

Hon.  Raymond  V.  Ingersoll 

Adrian  Iselin,  Jr. 

Charles  I  sham 

A.  Jacobi,  M.  D.,  LL.  D. 

S.  K.  Jacobs 

D.  S.  Jacobus,  M.  D. 

Walter  B.  James,  M.  D.,  LL.  D. 

Rev.  Charles  E.  Jefferson,  D.  D. 

Robert  U.  Johnson,  Ph.  D.,  L.  H.  D. 

Prof.  Henry  P.  Johnston 

William  A.  Johnston 

Otto  H.  Kahn 

Leon  Kamaiky 

Joseph  E.  Kean 

Albert   Keller 

Hon.  L.  Laflin  Kellogg 

Com.  J.  D.  J.  Kelly,  U.  S.  N. 

John  T.  Kelly 

Thomas  Kelly 

Henry  W.  Kent 

Hon.    Frederick   Kernochaii 

John  J.  Kindred,  M.  D. 

Darwin  P.  Kingsley 

Gustavus  T.  Kirby 

Marc  Klaw 

S.  R.  Klein,  M.  D.,  Ph.  D. 

Jacob  C.  Klinck 

Col.  Ardolph  L.  Kline 

John  J.  Kling 

Frank   Kneisel 

John  J.  Knewitz 

Roland  F.  Kroedler 

Samuel   Knopl,  Jr. 

Carl  A.  Koelsch 

Samuel  S.  Koenig 

Lee  Kohns 


The  Mayor's  Celebration  Committee          129 


Cornelius  G.   Kolff 

Hon.  Frederick  J.  H.  Kracke 

George  F.  Kunz.  Ph.  D.,  So.  D. 

Howard  Kyle 

C    Grant  LaFarge 

Rev.  Walter  Laidlaw.  Ph.  D. 

Frederick  S.  Lamb 

Samuel  W.  Lambert.  M.  D. 

Thomas  W.   Lamnnt 

Abraham  Landau 

Louis  Lande 

Frank  R.  Lawrence 

Richard  W.  Lawrence 

John  A.  Leach 

G.  Howland  Leavitt 

T.  Edgar  Leaycraft 

Albert  Ledoux,  Ph.  D. 

Frederic  G.  Lee 

John  J.  Lee 

Hon.  William  J.  Lee 

Thomas  L.  Learning 

Herbert  Lehman 

Eugene  Leifels 

Felix  F.  Leifels 

Henry  M.  Leipziger,  Ph.  D.,  LL.  D. 

Tames  M.  Leopold 

A.  Mitchell  Leslie 

Joseph  Levenson 

Benjamin   W.   Levitan 

Isadore  M.  Levy 

Franklin  C.  Lewis 

Nelson   P.  Lewis,  LL.  D. 

William   E.  Lewis 

Adolph   Lewisohn 

Samuel  Lewisohn 

J    W.  Lieb,  Jr. 

Charles  M.  Lincoln 

Hon.  Martin  W.  Littleton 

Carl  M.  Loeb 

Vincent  Loeser 

Gen.  George  B.  Loud 

John  H.  Love 

James  Luby 

William  M.  Macbean 

H.  M.  MacCracken,  LL.  D.,  D.  D. 

Charles  R.   MacDonald 

Rev.  J.  L.  Magnes 

H.  Van   Buren  Magonigle 

Jeremiah   T.   Mahoney 

Hon.  Dudley  Field  Malone 

Hon.  Milo  R.  Maltbie 

O.  H.  Mannes 

Rev.  Wm.  T.  Manning,  D.  D. 

William  Allen  Marble 

James   E.   March 

Joseph  S.  Marcus 

Hon.  Marcus  M.  Marks 

Don  Marquis 

George  A.  Marsh 

Walton  H.  Marshall 


Edgar  L.  Marston 

Bradley   Martin.  Jr. 

Samuel   I..  Martin 

Joseph  B.  Martindale 

Hon.  Douglas  Mathewson 

lion.  Julius  M.  Mayer 

Walter   E.   Maynard 

1  i<  n.   ( ieorge   MVAneny 

Hon.  Edward  E.  McCall 

Hon.  John   T.   McCall 

Hon.  William   McCarroll 

Geosge  B.  McClellan.  LL.  1  >. 

William  McClellan 

William  F.  McCombs 

Philip  J.  McCook 

Walter  L.  McCorkle 

John  J.  McCormack 

James  A.  McDonald 

Gates  W.  McGarrah 

Lawrence  McGuire 

John   Hall   McKay 

Andrew   McLean 

Fmerson  McMillin 

S.  C.  Mead 

Richard  W.  Meade 

John   Henry  Mears 

Daniel  Meenan 

Rev.  Harlan  G.  Mendenhall,  D.  E 

0  J.  Merkel 

Hon.   Herman  A.  Metz 

Julius  P.  Meyer 

Sidney  E.  Mezes,  LL.  D.,  Ph.  D. 

Merle  Middleton 

Charles  R.  Miller,  LL.  D. 

Cyrus  C.  Miller 

George  X.  Miller,  M.  D. 

Hugh  Gordon  Miller 

Ogden  L.  Mills 

Walter  S.  Mills,  M.  D. 

Henry  B.  Minton,  M.  D. 

Edward  P.  Mitchell.  LL.  D. 

Tames  M.  Montgomery 

George  T.  Moon 

Eugene  F.  Moran 

Hon.  Edward  M.  Morgan 

T.   P.  Morgan 

William  Fellowes  Morgan 

William  Fellowes  Morgan.  Jr. 

1  Icnry  Moruenthau 
Max  Morgenthau 
Robert  Lee  Morrell 
George  T.  Mortimer 
Henry  Moskowitz,  M.  D. 
Rev.  Joseph  Mulry 
Tames  J.  Munro 

Hon.  Daniel  F.  Murphy 
1^ MIL    John    I.    Murphy 
Patrick   F.   Murphy 
Thomas  Murray 
Thomas  E.  Murray 


130          The  Mayor's  Celebration  Committee 


William  C.  Muschenheim 

George  W.  Naumburg 

Walter  Neumuller 

Hon.  Richard  S.  Newcombe 

Edward  T.  Newell 

William  G.  Newman 

Courtlandt  Nicoll 

Hon.  DeLancey  Nicoll 

John  W.  T.  Nichols 

Dr.   William  H.   Nichols 

John  H.  O'Brien 

John  P.  O'Brien 

Hon.  Morgan  J.  O'Brien 

Adolph  S.  Ochs 

Rollo  Ogden,  L.  H.  D. 

Col.   Willis   L.   Ogden 

Hon.  James  A.   O'Gorman 

Hon.  Arthur  J.  O'Keeffe 

F.ben  E.  Olcott 

Hon.  Denis  O'Leary 

Frank  Oliver 

Harry  E.  Oliver 

Robert  Olyphant 

Alfred  E.  Ommen 

Hon.  Samuel  H.  Ordway 

Henry  F.  Osborn,  LL.  D.,  Sc.  D. 

William  Church  Osborn 

Farley  Osgood 

Kano  Oshima 

Eugene  H.  Outerbridge 

R.  Pagenstecher 

Hon.  Alton  B.  Parker 

G.  Elton  Parks 

Hon.  Herbert  Parsons 

William  Barclay  Parsons 

William  Bowne  Parsons 

Hon.  Thomas  G.  Patten 

Prof.  Henry  Carr  Pearson 

W.  Albert   Pease.  Jr. 

Vincent  C.  Pene 

Hon.  George  W.  Perkins 

Ralph  Peters 

Nathaniel  Phillips 

Hon.  N.  Taylor  Phillips 

Gottfried  Piel 

James  F.  Pierce 

John  B.  Pine,  L.  H.  D. 

Antonio  Pisani,  M.  D. 

Celestino  Piva 

Ira  A.  Place 

George  A.  Plimpton,  LL.   D. 

William  M.  Polk.  M.  D. 

Walter  B.  Pollock 

Palph  H.  Pomerov,  M.  D. 

Rev.  D.  de  Sola  Pool 

Ruel  W.  Poor 

H.  Hobart  Porter 

George  B.  Post 

Dr.  Woodruff  L.  Post 

Hon.  Lewis  H.  Pounds 


Dallas  B.  Pratt 

Frederic  B.  Pratt 

Herbert  L.  Pratt 

Hon.  William  A.  Prendergast 

Frank  Presbrey 

Charles  W.  Price 

J.  Coil  Price 

Joseph  M.  Price 

Flon.  Cornelius  A.  Pugsley 

Prof.  M.  I.  Pupin 

George  Haven  Putnam,  Litt.  D. 

Irving  E.  Raymond 

Leo  L.  Redding 

Fred  A.  Reed 

William  C.  Reick 

Ogden  Mills  Reid 

John  F.  Reis 

Rev.  Christian  F.  Reisner,  D.  D. 

James  Bronson  Reynolds 

Philip  Rhinelander 

Calvin  W.  Rice 

Leonard  Richards 

Victor  Ridder 

Welding  Ring 

Francis  L.  Robbins,  Jr. 

Allan  Robinson 

David  Robinson 

Edward  Robinson,  LL.  D.,  Litt.  D. 

Nelson  Robinson 

John  D.  Rockefeller,  Jr. 

G.  Vernor  Rogers 

Saul  E.  Rogers 

Theodore  Roosevelt,  Jr. 

Hon.  Otto  Rosalsky 

Walter  T.  Rosen 

Morris  Rosenwasser 

Edward  S.  Rothschild 

Theodore  Rousseau 

Henry  E.  Royce 

.E.  A.  Rumely,  M.  D. 

Col.  Jacob  Ruppert,  Jr. 

Charles  H.  Sabin 

Col.  Henry  W.  Sackett 

Isadore  Saks 

Walter  J.  Salomon 

Col.  Herbert  L.  Satterlee 

\Villiam  L.  Saunders 

Reginald  H.  Sayre,  M.  D. 

R.  J.  Schaefer 

Arthur  F.  Schermerhorn 

William  J.  Schieffelin,  Ph.  D. 

Jacob  H.  Schiff 

Mortimer  L.   Schiff 

Gustave  Schirmer 

Carl  L.  Schurz 

Charles  M.  Schwab 

Charles  Scribner 

Charles  E.  Scribner 

Hon.  Patrick  J.  Scully 

Frederick  C.  Seaburv 


The  Mayor's  Celebration  Committee  131 


Hon.  Samuel  Seahury 
Isaac   X.   Seligman 
Lorenzo  Semple 
Cecil  F.  Shallcross 

Sharpe 

John  M.   Shaw 
George  R.  Sheldon 
Finlev  J.  Shepard 
Gen.  Charles  H.  Sherrill 
Abraham  Shiman 
Charles  E.  Sholes 
Lee  Shubert 
Joseph  Ferris  Simmons 
Franklin  Simon 
Robert  E.  Simon 
William  A.   Simonson 
Lewis  E.   Sisson 
William  Sloane 
William  Douglas  Sloane 
Thomas  W.   Slocum 
Chandler   Smith 
Henry  Clapp  Smith 
J.  Ga'rdner  Smith.  M.  D. 
Rev.  Joseph  F.  Smith 
James  MacGregor  Smith 
Hon.  R.  A.  C.  Smith 
Stephen  L.  Snowden 
Luigi  Solari 

Frederick  E.  Sondern.  M.  D. 
Dr.  Edmund  B.  Southwick 
Alexander  H.   Spencer 
Nelson  S.  Spencer 
James  Speyer 
Hon.  Charles  A.   Spofford 
Prank  J.  Sprague 
Walter  Stabler 
Hon.  Charles  Steckler 
Fred  M.  Stein 
Joseph  H.  Steinhardt 
Louis  Stern 
Fred  Sterry 
Francis  Lynde  Stetson 
Frederick  A.  Stevenson 
James  Stillman 
Hon.  Henry  L.  Stimson 
Edward  W,  Stitt.  Ph.  D. 
Henry  L.   Stoddard 
I.  N.  Phelps  Stokes 
Brad-  ton 

Charle>  W.   Strmijht"n 
Charles  H.  Stout 

Isidor  Straus 
Hon.  Oscar  S.  Straus 
Hon.  Charl< 
Frank  V.  Stra 
Charles  H.  Str 
John  F.  Sullivan 
Gerard  Swone 
Herbert  B.  Swope 
Henry  W.  Taft 


J.  K  Tal. 

I  Yi  derick    C.    Tanner 

( lot    Ianu-s   I.  Taylor 

John  S.  Thacher".  M.  D. 

r>enamin    I'..   'I  haver 

Paul  G.  Thebaud 

C.  G.   M.  Th«>mas 

Gustav    \\ .    Thompson 

I  lenry   S.   Thi  >n 

Jefferson  D.  Thompson 

\\'.  Gilmaii  Tlmmpsoii,  M.  D. 

Charles  Thorjey 

Toel  \\".  Thome 

John  L.  Tiidsley 

Irancesco  Tocci 

Hon.  Calvin  Tomkins 

John  R.  Totten 

Henry  R.  T'owne 

Charles  H.  Tovvnsend,  Sc.  D. 

Copeland  Townsend 

Harry  H.  Treadwell 

Eliot  Tuckerman 

Horace  S.  Tuthill 

William  P.  Tuttle.  Jr. 

Albert  Ulmann 

Theodore.  N.  Vail.  LL.  D. 

Guy  Van  Amringe 

Col.  Cornelius  Vanderbilt 

William  K.  Vanderbilt 

V.  A.  Vanderlip 

Hon.  Calvin  D.  Van  Name 

Cortlandt  S.  \"an  Rensselaer 

Marion  J.  Verdery 

Oswald  G.  Villard.  Litt.  D.,  LI..  D. 

Hon.  Robert  I-'.  Volentine 

Otto  Von  Schrenk 

Hon.  W.  H.  Wadhams 

Col.  Alfred  Wagstaff 

James  M.  Wakeman 

Samuel  Wallach 

James  J.  Walsh.  Ph.  D..  M.  D. 

Felix  M.  Warburg 

I-Ion.   Cabot  Ward 

Charles  Elliott  Warren 

Lloyd  Warren 

Harry  W.  Watrous 

Hon."  Archibald  R.  Watson 

Edward  E.  Watts 

William  Webber 

F.  Delano  We- 

Hon.  John  F.  V 

T.  Alden  Weir 

Rev.  George  U.  Wenner.   P.   D. 

Tames  E.  Y 

Hon.  John  Whalen 

Charles    A.   WhHan 

r  M.  Whit. 
Alfred  T.  White 

Gaylord  S.  White 
Lawrence  G.  White 


132  The  Mayor's  Celebration  Committee 


Thomas  C.  Whitlock 

Hon.  Thomas  W.  Whittle 

Hon.    George   W.   Wickersham 

Albert  H.  Wiggin 

John  A.  Wilbur 

Louis  Wiley 

William  J.  Wilgus 

Hon.  William  G.  Willcox 

Hon.  William  R.  Willcox 

Arthur  Williams 

F.  Ballard  Williams 

H.  P.  Williams 

John  D.  Williams 

Lloyd  T.  Williams 

Talcott  Williams,  LL.  D.,  L.  H.  D. 

W.  H.  Williams 

Hon.  William  Williams 


George  T'.  Wilson 

Paul  C.  Wilson 

Col.  George  W.  Wingate 

Hon.  Egerton  L.   Winthrop,  Jr. 

Henry  A.  Wise 

Joseph  H.  Wise 

Rev.  Cornelius  Woelfkin.  D.  D. 

Walter  Henry  Wood 

Hon.  Arthur  Woods 

William  Woodward 

Frank  W.  Woolworth 

Henry  T.  Wright 

F.  A.  Wurzbach 

John  A.  Wyeth,  M.  D.,  LL.  D. 

Hon.  Richard  Young 

Dr.  Paul  Henry  Zagat 

Peter  Zucker 


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